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THE  CONTENDING  LOVERS 


BY 

WILLARD  EDWARD  FARNHAM 


[Reprinted  from   the  Publications  of  the  Modern  Language  Association 
of  America,  xxxv,  3] 


The  Modern  Language  Association  of  Amebica 
1920 


^ 


-^N 


THE  CONTENDING  LOVERS 

The  Coniending  Lovers  ^  is  a  folk-tale  of  love  rivalry — 
but  of  love  rivalry  with  a  difference.  Because  it  lias  cer- 
tain uncommon  distinctions,  among  tliem  a  provocative 
iove  problem  which  is  usually  left  wholly  unsolved,  I  have 
previously  attempted  to  show  in  brief  fashion  its  affinity 
ivith  Chaucer's  Parlement  of  Foules  ^  and  to  prove  by 

*  The  name  is  chosen  after  some  consideration.  Benfey  in  his 
famous  Ausland  essay  (Ausland,  1858,  pp.  969  fT.;  Eleinere  Schriften 
rr,  iii,  pp.  94 ff.)  calls  one  type  of  the  tale  "Das  Miirchen  von  den 
Menschen  mit  den  wunderbaren  Eigcnscliaften,"  a  denomination 
which  has  the  decided  disadvantage  of  not  fitting  all  types.  The 
lovers  as  we  shall  find  them  are  not  always  men  of  skill  or  wonderful 
gifts.  Wesselofsky  {II  Paradiso  degli  Alherti,  I,  ii,  p.  240)  speaks 
of  "  quel  ciclo  leggendario  che  noi  diciamo  dei  fratelli  artifici,"  laying 
himself  open  to  the  objection  that  the  lovers  are  not  always  brothers 
and  not  always  artificers.  Therefore  I  submit  The  Contending  Lovers 
as  indicating  more  accurately  an  important  and  distinctive  feature, 
namely  the  striving  of  the  suitors  both  by  deed  and  by  argument 
for  the  hand  of  the  desired  maiden. 

'  The  Sources  of  Chaucer's  "  Parlement  of  Foules,"  Publications  of 
the  Modern  Language  Association,  xxxn  (1917),  pp.  492  flf.;  The 
Fowls  in  Chaucer's  Parlement,  University  of  Wisconsin  Studies  in 
Language  and  Literature,  no.  2    (1918),  pp.  341  ff. 

247 


248  WILLAKD    EDWAED    FARNHAM 

especial  reference  to  II  Paradiso  degli  Alherti,^  a  work 
cut  of  Chaucer's  own  period,  that  the  Parlement  should 
be  regarded  as  a  poetical  and  highly  sophisticated  version 
of  the  folk-tale.  But  the  curious  and  interesting  features 
of  The  Contending  Lovers  will  support  a  self-sufficient 
study  in  folk-lore,  and  such  a  study  is  primarily  the  aim 
of  the  following  pages.  The  Parlement  will  occasionally 
be  admitted  to  the  discussion,  especially  in  conclusion, 
since  relationship  to  Chaucer  necessarily  gives  the  folk- 
tale itself  an  enhanced  interest,  but  only  casual  arguments 
will  be  made  for  this  relationship.  The  material,  now 
studied  in  detail,*  is  meant  to  form  its  own  argument. 

The  similarities  between  the  Parlenvent  and  Giovanni 
da  Prate's  tale  of  the  founding  of  Prato  in  II  Paradiso 
degli  Alherti  have  already  been  sufficiently  exploited. 
Moreover,  both  Chaucer  and  Giovanni  tell  such  sophisti- 
cated elaborations  that  a  neglect  to  discuss  them  syste- 
matically in  this  study  of  the  simpler  folk  versions  does 
small  violence  to  good  order. 

'Publications  of  the  Modern  Language  Association,  xxxii,  pp. 
^'  495  ff. 

j^  *  Much  material  has  become  available  since  Benfey's  Ausland  essay 

<V  (see  note  1)  and  Wesselof sky's  notes  to  the  tale  of  the  founding  of 

Prato  {II  Paradiso  degli  Alberti,  Bologna,  1867,  I,  ii,  pp.  238  ff.). 
Valuable  as  both  works  are,  no  attempt  is  made  by  either  of  these 
scholars  to  distinguish  or  study  types,  and  Benfey  confines  his  study 
largely  to  one  type.  In  addition  to  these  two  treatments  there  are 
convenient  collections  of  notes  or  scattered  presentations  of  material 
in  Clouston,  Popular  Tales  and  Fictions,  1887,  i,  pp.  277  flf. ;  D'Ancona, 
Stud)  di  Critica  e  Storia  Letteraria,  Bologna,  1912,  revised  and 
enlarged  edition,  n,  pp.  160  ff.;  Kohler,  Kleinere  8ch.riften,  I,  pp. 
438 ff.;  Chauvin,  BihliograpMe  dcs  Ouvrages  Arabes,  1892-1909,  vi, 
p.  133,  note  3,  and  vin,  p.  76;  Basset,  Revue  des  Traditions  Popu- 
laires,  va  (1892),  p.  188,  note  4;  Cosquin,  Revue  des  Traditions 
Populaires,  xxxi  (1916),  pp.  98  ff.,  and  145  ff.  Bolte  und  Polivka, 
AnmerkuJigen  zu  den  Kinder-  u.  Hausmarchen  dcr  Briidcr  Grimm, 
Band  iii,  1918,  which  was  delayed  by  the  war  and  has  but  recently 
become  available,  furnishes  by  far  the  best  and  most  exhaustive  col- 
lection of  notes.     (Xo.  129,  pp.  45-58.) 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEKS  249 


ORIENTAL  ORIGINS 

From  first  to  last  The  Contending  Lovers  is  rightfullv 
a  problem  tale,  and  jet  its  peculiar  ending  lias  never  been 
duly  emphasized.  The  plot  is  sometimes  simple,  some- 
times complex,  but  it  always  deals  with  the  almost  equal 
claims  to  a  maiden  by  a  number  of  suitors.  However  the 
claims  may  be  brought  into  being — and  their  foundations 
are  extremely  varied — they  are  always  so  nearly  alike  in 
merit  that  a  contention  arises  among  the  lovers.  Fre- 
quently a  judge  or  even  the  maiden  herself  cannot  decide 
the  dispute,  and  thus  there  is  provocation  to  discussion  on 
the  part  of  the  audience,  which,  when  all  is  said  and  done, 
seems  to  be  the  point  of  the  story. 

The  hoax  is  made  plain,  as  will  be  seen,  by  the  Oriental 
story  frameworks  which  incorporate  the  earliest  recorded 
versions.  Like  so  many  stories  which  have  been  adopted 
by  Europe  The  Contending  Lovers  was,  so  far  as  is  known, 
born  in  India,  and  from  its  birthplace  travelled  a  well 
recognized  route,  first  appearing  in  Sanskrit,  then  in  Per- 
sian, then  in  Arabic,  and  finally  in  European  languages. 
Oldest  are  four  versions  in  the  famous  Sanskrit  Vetdla- 
panchavinsati  (Twenty-five  Tales  of  a  Demon),  which  are 
even  here  differentiated  as  four  separate  types,  and  which 
later  produce  a  numerous  progeny  in  kind.  These  stories 
form  part  of  the  traditions  gathered  together  in  the  Vetdla- 
panchavinsati  and  other  compilations  around  that  King 
Arthur  of  India,  the  Rajah  Vikramaditya,  who  was  a  his- 
torical king  of  the  first  century  B.  C.^    The  Qivaddsa  re- 

^  For  brief  information  see  Babington,  The  Veddla  Cadai,  1831 
{Misc.  Trs.  from  Oriental  Langs.),  Preface,  p.  iv;  Sagas  from  the 
Far  East,  1873,  p.  245;  Oesterley,  Baital  Pachlsl,  1873,  Einleitung, 
p.  2. 


250  WILLARD    EDWARD    FABNHAM 

daction  of  tlie  Vetdlapanchavinsati  ^  may  be  dated  by  in- 
ternal evidence  as  probably  of  the  sixth  century  after 
Christ,^  but  its  tales  were  no  doubt  old  when  collected,  and 
originally  may  have  had  nothing  to  do  with  Vikramaditya. 
From  the  most  ancient  collections  built  around  the 
heroic  figure  of  Vikramaditya  ^  we  shall  trace  occurrences 
of  our  folk-tale  in  rough  chronological  order  through  Per- 
sian and  Arabic  works;  important  versions  which  have 
severed  the  traditional  connection  with  Vikramaditya  will 
appear  in  the  Persian  TutirNcima,  the  Persian  8indihdd- 
.  Ndma  or  Book  of  Shidihdd,  and  the  Arabic  Thousand  and 
One  Nights. 

The  Vetdla  Versions 

The  framework  of  the  Vetdlapanchavinsati  demonstrates 
that  four  divergent  versions  of  The  Contending  Lovers 
were  very  early  problem  stories  pure  and  simple.  The 
problems  they  offered  were  never  meant  to  be  fully  settled. 
Room  for  discussion  was  always  to  be  left  open.  Every 
tale  in  the  Vetdla  collection  is  so  unsatisfactorily  and 
tantalizingly  concluded  that  it  will  make  the  character  to 
whom  it  is  told  break  a  silence  which  it  is  greatly  to  his 

'  A  text  of  the  Vetdlapancliavinsati  has  been  constituted  by  Uhle 
based  largely  on  the  Qivadasa  redaction  {Die  Vetdlapaficavincatika, 
in  den  Recensionen  des  Qivadasa  und  eines  TJngenwnnten,  von  Hein- 
rich  Ulile,  Leipzig,  1S81).  However,  the  tales  are  not  fully  trans- 
lated and  those  which  have  been  translated  arc  to  be  found  in 
scattered  places.  The  first  six,  the  eighth,  and  the  twelfth  are 
accessible  in  translations  into  European  languages.  (See  notes  to 
tales  given  in  following  pages.)  The  Hindi  Baital  PacMsl,  however, 
includes  all  the  Vetala  tales  and  has  been  translated  into  English 
and  German. 

*  Oesterley,  Baital  Pachlsl,  Einleitung,  p.  3. 

*  The  Vetdla  tales  are  also  part  of  the  more  modern  Sanskrit 
collection  Kathd-Sarit-Sdgara.  The  Siddhi-K-iir  is  a  IMongolian 
Vetdla  redaction,  and  among  Indian  dialect  versions  are  the  Tamul 
Veddla  Cadai  and  the  Hindi  Baitdl  Pachlsl. 


THE    CONTENDINa    LOVEES  251 

interest  to  keep.     The  veliicle  which  carries  the  tales  is 
this :  ^ 

Vikramaditya  is  a  powerful  king,  and  about  his  throne,  which  is 
called  Sinhasana,  wise  men  and  famous  gather.  On  a  certain  day  a 
Yogi,  Cantigila  by  name,  comes  to  the  king's  castle,  and  after  pleas- 
ing him  greatly  by  a  gift  of  fruits  in  each  of  which  is  contained  a 
marvellous  jewel,  obtains  the  king's  promise  to  help  him  in  some 
incantations  which  will  gain  power  over  spirits.  The  king  keeps  a 
rendez-vous  with  the  sorcerer,  who  sends  him  to  a  spot  where  dead 
bodies  are  burned,  telling  him  that  on  a  certain  tree  he  will  find  a 
corpse  hanging.  This  he  must  cut  doAvn  and  bring  back  with  him, 
being  careful  not  to  speak,  however,  or  the  body  will  go  back  and 
suspend  itself  once  more  on  its  tree.  Then  his  work  will  be  to  do 
all  over  again.  The  king  finds  the  corpse,  climbs  the  tree,  and  cuts 
it  down.  Throwing  it  over  his  shoulder,  he  starts  to  return,  but 
within  the  body  there  is  a  Vetala  or  demon,  who  speaks  to  the  king 
and  proposes  to  make  the  journey  less  wearisome  by  telling  stories." 

The  Vetala  tells  twenty-five  tales  in  all,  and  at  the  conclusion  of 
each  tale  except  the  last  the  king  immediately  breaks  silence  to  give 
a  decision  or  opinion  on  the  problem  raised  by  the  narration.  The 
demon  then  goes  back  to  the  tree.  After  the  twenty-fifth  tale,  the 
king  is  so  perplexed  with  the  problem  that  he  cannot  find  an  answer. 
The  Vetala  then  tells  the  king  that  his  ready  wit  has  so  pleased  him 
that  he  will  warn  him  of  harm  intended  by  the  Yogi.  Following  the 
Vetdla's  instructions,  the  king  kills  the  Yogi  on  his  return,  and  is 
assured  a  successful  and  happy  reign  for  many  years  thereafter. 

The  first  version  of  The  Contending  Lovers  is  the  second 
tale  of  the  collection :  "^ 

^  See  Der  VetalapancavitiQati,  oder  fiXnfxmdzwanzig  erzdhlungen 
eines  Daemon,  erster  Teil,  tr.  A.  Luber,  Gorz,  1875,  pp.  14  fF.  The 
Hindi  Baital  Pachisi  will  be  used  to  supplement  direct  translations 
from  the  Sanskrit.  The  minor  variations  in  the  tales  which  it  gives 
are  of  small  importance  for  our  purposes.  The  Baital  has  been 
translated  into  English  by  W.  Burckhardt  Barker,  Hertford,  1855. 

'The  introduction  is  fuller  and  slightly  different  in  the  Baital 
PacMsl,  where  we  are  given  more  traditional  matter  about  King 
Vikramaditya,  or  Bikram,  as  he  is  here  called.  For  variations  in 
introduction  among  other  versions  of  the  Vetala  collection  see  Oester- 
ley,  work  cited,  pp.  171  ff. 

^  I  summarize  from  a  French  translation  of  the  Civadasa  redac- 
tion: La  Jeune  Fille  et  les  Trois  Brahmanes,  tr.  Victor  Henry  from 
Uhle's  text,  Bev.  des  Trad.  Pop.,  I  (1886),  pp.  370  ff. 


252  WILLARD    EDWAED    FARNHAM 

A  brahman  named  Kegava  has  a  daughter  justly  famed  for  her 
beauty.  Three  brahmans  ask  her  in  marriage,  and  they  are  of  such 
equal  merit  that  the  father  is  much  perplexed  to  know  how  he  shall 
decide  among  them.  However,  the  maiden  suddenly  dies  by  the  bite 
of  a  serpent.  The  lovers  are  stricken  with  grief.  One  mounts  the 
pyre  and  is  consumed  along  with  the  body  of  his  beloved.  The 
second  constructs  a  small  hut  in  the  cemetery  and  guards  the  tomb 
in  which  the  ashes  are  placed.  The  third  makes  a  vow  61  asceticism 
and  departs  for  another  country. 

On  his  travels,  the  third  lover  stops  with  a  brahman  and  his  wife 
who  offer  him  their  hospitality.  He  is  horrified  to  see  the  woman 
throw  her  child  into  the  fire  for  a  trifling  ofTense.  However,  he  is 
reassured  when  the  father  produces  a  book  out  of  which  he  reads  a 
formula  that  soon  restores  the  child  to  life.  At  night  the  lover 
steals  away  with  the  book.  When  he  has  reached  the  cemetery,  he 
tries  the  formula,  and  finds  it  efficacioiis  in  bringing  to  life  both  the 
girl  and  the  lover  who  had  died  on  her  pyre. 

Thereupon  the  three  brahmans  in  angry  fashion  dispute  for  the 
hand  of  the  girl.^ 

When  he  has  finished  his  relation,  the  demon  says,  "  O  roi,  parle, 
de  qui  doit-elle  etre  I'epouse?"  The  king  makes  answer,  "6coute: 
celui  qui  a  ressuscitS  la  jeune  fille  est  son  p6re,  puisqu'il  lui  a  donng 
la  vie;  celui  qui  est  mort  avec  elle  est  son  frfere,  puisqu'il  est  n6 
avec  elle;  celui  qui  doit  I'gpouser  c'est  celui  qui  a  gardfi  sa  tombe." 

The  demon  then  escapes  and  returns  to  hang  himself  on  his  tree. 

This  is  an  excellent  example  of  an  early  subdivision  in 
the  general  class  of  contending  lover  tales,  namely,  that  in 
v;hicli  the  services  of  the  striving  lovers  procure  a  resusci- 
tation of  the  maiden.  The  descendants  of  this  type  are 
numerous.  Very  often  the  resuscitated  maiden  is  not  dead 
but  dying. 

The  second  version  of  our  tale  is  the  fifth  of  the  collec- 
tion :  ® 

^In  Luber's  translation  we  have  a  variant  version  (ii.  Erziihlung, 
pp.  25  ff. ) .  The  lovers  are  four.  A  dies  on  the  funeral  pyre,  B 
gathers  the  ashes  and  holds  watch  over  them,  C  travels  as  a  religious 
man,  D  goes  back  to  his  home  and  does  nothing.  The  Baital  has 
three  lovers,  but  the  first  and  second  divide  the  custody  of  the  ashes, 
and  the  first  does  not  die.  Henry  translates  still  another  variant 
with  three  lovers  in  Rev.  des  Trad.  Pop.,  i,  pp.  372  ff. 

''Translated  by  Benfey,  Klcincre  Schriftcn,  ii,  iii,  pp.  96  ff.,  and 


THE    CONTENDING   LOVEES  253 

Haridasa,  the  minister  of  King  Mahabala,  has  a  daughter  named 
Mahade%a,  who  is  exceedingly  beautiful  and  has  just  reached  mar- 
riageable age.  But  the  girl  demands,  "  Father,  give  me  only  to 
someone  who  possesses  an  imrivalled  natural  gift."  While  he  is  off 
in  another  country  transacting  diplomatic  business,  Haridasa  finds 
a  suitor  who  seems  in  every  way  acceptable.  Meanwhile  the  eldest 
brother  of  the  girl,  and  also  the  mother,  find  acceptable  young 
brahmans.  All  three  suitors  have  been  definitely  promised  the  hand 
of  the  maiden.  One  has  a  chariot  ready  to  his  instant  command 
which  will  go  anj^vhere  through  the  air.  The  second  has  the  art  of 
divination.  The  third  is  an  exceptionally  skilful  marksman  with 
bow  and  arrow. 

The  bralimans  have  already  commenced  an  argument  among  them- 
selves as  to  their  rights  to  the  girl  under  the  promises  made  to  them, 
when  she  is  abducted  by  a  Raksliasa,  or  evil  spirit,  and  carried 
away  to  a  mountain.  The  man  of  knowledge  has  no  trouble  in 
learning  just  where  the  maid  has  been  taken.  The  owner  of  the 
chariot  volunteers  its  use  to  the  marksman,  and  the  latter  succeeds 
in  killing  the  Raksliasa  and  rescuing  the  maid.  Strife  now  ensues 
between  the  suitors  as  to  their  new  claims,  and  there  is  deep  per- 
plexity on  the  part  of  the  father,  who  is  called  upon  to  pass  judg- 
ment. 

The  Vetala  asks  King  Vikramuditya  for  an  opinion,  and  the  king 
decides  that  the  man  of  knowledge  should  possess  the  maid.  On  the 
Vetala's  protesting  that  all  the  suitors  have  gifts  of  equal  worth, 
the  king  replies  that  the  man  of  knowledge  has  six  natural  gifts 
which  would  make  him  feared  by  the  gods  themselves." 

This  version  too  is  tlie  early  representative  of  a  type. 
It  is  distinguished  by  the  rescue  of  a  captured  maiden 
which  the  lovers  accomplish  by  means  of  natural  gifts,  or 
magic  things  such  as  the  chariot. 

The  third  tale  of  contending  lovers  is  the  sixth  of  the 
Veidla  collection.  Although  it  does  not  belong  to  the  group 
which  has  had  most  influence  on  European  folk-literature, 

also  by  Luber.     The  Baital  is  remarkably  close   to  the  Sanskrit 
version. 

^""Eifer,  Muth  imd  Geduld,  Starke,  Weisheit  und  hohe  Tapfer- 
keit,  wer  fiber  diese  sechs  Gaben  herrscht,  den  furchten  die  Gotter 
eelbst,"  translates  Benfey  (see  p.  98). 


254  WrLLAED    EDWAED    FAENHAM 

and  althoiigli  it  may  seem  at  first  to  be  somewliat  outside 
the  well-defined  class  under  consideration,  it  has  unde- 
niable relation  to  the  problem  tales  in  wbicb  a  loved  one 
is  the  subject  of  dispute.    It  is  as  follows:  ^^ 

A  washerman  goes  to  the  temple  of  the  goddess  Devi,  and  there  sees 
and  is  smitten  with  love  lor  the  daughter  of  the  king's  washerman. 
He  vows  to  the  goddess  on  the  spur  of  the  moment  that  if  he  can 
obtain  her  to  wife,  he  will  offer  his  ov\ti  head  as  a  sacrifice.  A 
friend  takes  pity  on  him  because  of  his  love-longifig,  acts  as  go- 
between,  and  succeeds  in  bringing  the  marriage  to  pass.  As  bride- 
groom and  friend  are  taking  the  bride  home  after  the  ceremony,  they 
pass  the  temple  of  Devi,  and  the  bridegroom  is  suddenly  reminded  of 
his  vow.  He  leaves  his  wife  and  his  friend  by  the  roadside,  enters, 
and  without  more  ado  decapitates  himself.  After  a  time  his  friend 
begins  to  wonder  at  his  delay,  and  leaving  the  wife,  finds  the  other 
weltering  in  his  blood.  He  is  obsessed  by  fear  that  suspicion  will 
attach  to  him,  and  cuts  off  his  head.  The  bride  soon  finds  the  two 
corpses,  and  is  about  to  strangle  herself  when  the  goddess  speaks 
and  bids  her  replace  the  heads  on  the  bodies.  This  she  starts  to  do, 
but  in  her  joyful  haste  she  mixes  the  heads,  and  places  the  wrong 
ones  on  the  bodies.    A  dispute  arises. 

To  which  combination  of  head  and  body  does  the  woman  belong 
as  wife,  asks  the  Vetdla?  The  king  decides  that  she  belongs  to  the 
husband's  head,  since  of  all  parts  of  the  body,  the  head  is  the  best.^* 

Of  all  the  versions  of  Tlie  Contending  Lovers  in  the 
Vetdla  collection  tbe  most  interesting  for  purposes  of  com- 
parison witb  tbe  Paradiso  and  tbe  Parlement  of  Foules  is 
the  seventh  tale  told  to  King  Vikramaditya :  ^^ 

King  Champakeshwar  of  the  city  of  Champapur  has  a  daughter 
named  Tribhuvan  who  is  beautiful  beyond  description.  When  it  ia 
known  that  the  king  and  queen  are  considering  marriage  for  their 
daughter,  monarchs  of  all  kingdoms  round  about  cause  their  por- 

"  Translated  by  Benfey,  Orient  und  Occident,  i  (1S62),  pp.  730  ff. 

"The  version  in  the  Baital  Pachisi  is  the  same  in  all  essential 
details. 

"  I  siunmarize  from  the  Baital  Pachtsl,  tr.  Barker,  1855,  pp.  157  ff., 
Oesterley  has  had  the  chance  to  compare  the  Baital  version  with  a 
siunmary  of  the  Vetdla  tale,  and  finds  little  difference  between  the 
two. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEKS  255 

traits  to  be  submitted  to  the  maid.  But  she  is  not  pleased  with  any 
one  of  them.  Then  the  father  says,  "  Malce  clioice  of  a  husband 
thyself."  She  answers  that  she  must  have  a  husband  who  is  at  once 
the  happy  possessor  of  good  looks,  good  qualities,  and  good  sense. 
Four  suitors  from  different  countries  present  themselves  before  the 
king  and  make  their  claims. 

The  first  says,  "  I  can  malce  a  certain  cloth  which  I  sell  for  five 
rubies,"  and  explains  to  what  use  he  puts  his  gains.  "  My  good 
looks  are  apparent,"  he  modestly  concludes. 

The  second  says,  "  I  understand  the  language  of  water  and  land 
animals,  of  birds  and  of  beasts,  and  I  have  no  equal  in  strength  j  of 
my  comeliness  you  may  yourself  judge." 

The  third  claims  perfect  knowledge  of  the  Shastras  and  an 
obviously  handsome  mien. 

The  fourtli  also  claims  unique  knowledge  of  the  Shastras,  and 
declares  that  furthermore  he  has  the  art  of  discharging  arrows  and 
hitting  anything  which  is  heard  though  not  seen.  Like  the  others, 
he  claims  self-evident  comeliness. 

The  father  hears  the  speeches  of  the  four,  and  begins  to  reflect, 
"  The  four  are  equal  in  excellence  and  attainments, — to  which  shall 
I  give  the  maiden  ?  "  He  goes  to  the  daughter,  explains  the  situa- 
tion, and  asks  her  to  decide  for  herself.  She  is  abashed,  and,  hanging 
down  her  head,  does  not  know  what  to  reply. 

In  answer  to  the  demon's  question  King  Vikramaditya  decides 
the  problem  wholly  on  the  basis  of  caste.  He  says,  "  He  who  made 
the  cloth  and  sold  it  was  the  Shudr  caste,  and  he  who  understood 
the  language  of  animals  was  a  Vaishya,  and  he  who  was  acquainted 
with  the  Shastras  was  a  brahman,  and  he  who  would  discharge  an 
arrow  which  should  hit  what  was  heard  though  not  seen  was  of  the 
same  caste  as  herself,  and  she  was  therefore,  a  fitting  wife  for  him." 

The  class  relationship  of  all  four  stories  just  summar- 
ized, with  the  exception  of  the  story  of  the  exchanged 
heads,  is  apparent.  A  composite  summary  of  them  would 
be  something  after  this  sort:  Three  or  four  youths  of 
noble  rank  sue  for  the  hand  of  a  well-born  maiden,  and 
although  each  supports  a  well-founded  claim  to  his  loved 
one,  he  cannot  convince  the  father  that  he  is  the  one  to  be 
favored  above  the  others.  The  father  finally  leaves  the 
question  unsettled.  In  the  story  of  the  exchanged  heads 
there  is  a  contention  between  parts  of  a  lover  instead  of 


256  WILLAED   EDWAED   FAENHAM 

between  several  lovers,  but  the  general  situation  is  similar 
to  that  in  the  other  three  tales. 

Thus  early  in  our  contact  with  The  Contending  Lovers 
we  are  certain  that  the  indecisive  ending  is  an  organic 
part  of  the  structure.  The  very  plan  and  purpose  of  the 
Vctdla  collection  precludes  the  telling  of  a  tale  about  the 
interpretation  of  which  there  could  not  be  a  possible  differ- 
ence of  opinion.  The  Vetdlapanchavinsati  is  a  most  clever 
collection  of  hoaxes  from  beginning  to  end,  and  an  admir- 
able climax  is  the  twenty-fifth  tale,  which  tells  of  a  king 
who  marries  a  princess  and  of  the  king's  son  who  marries 
the  queen,  mother  of  the  father's  wife.  It  is  not  to  be 
wondered  that  the  ready  King  Yikramaditya  at  last  finds 
himself  nonplussed  when  the  Vetdla  asks  what  relation- 
ship exists  between  the  children  of  the  two  royal  pairs; 
this  is  a  poser  which  might  well  give  pause  to  a  modern 
court  of  law. 

Strangely  enough,  this  characteristic  hoax  feature  of  our 
tale  has  been  hardly  considered  at  all  by  those  who  have 
discussed  its  versions.  Benfey  makes  suggestive  com- 
parisons between  types  of  lovers  and  their  services  in  the 
tales  he  has  collected,  but  deals  only  in  a  casual  way  with 
the  indecisive  ending.^*  Wesselofsky  in  his  summaries 
sometimes  slights  the  endings,  apparently  taking  the  stories 
as  complete  for  his  purposes  of  comparison  when  he  has 
traced  the  lovers  through  the  different  sorts  of  service 
which  they  perform.  ^^  Clouston  also  does  not  seem  to 
regard  the  story  as  having  any  characteristic  ending.  For 
instance,  he  summarizes  the  tale  from  Slddlii-Kur  and 
omits  to  mention  the  strife  between  the  lovers  and  the 
opinion  passed  by  King  Yikramaditya.^^ 

"See  the  Ausland  essay  already  referred  to. 

^5  See  Paradiso,  i,  ii,  pp.  238  ff. 

"  Clouston,  Popular  Tales  and  Fictions,  i,  pp.  288  S. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEES  257 

The  seventh  tale  of  the  Vetalapanchavlnsati,  the  last 
just  summarized,  has  one  sharp  and  important  line  of 
demarcation  from  the  other  tales.  While  in  the  first  two 
tales  dealing  with  contending  lovers,  the  Resuscitation  and 
Rescue  tales,  a  large  part  of  the  claims  preferred  by  the 
lovers  are  based  on  service  performed  for  the  maiden,  here 
there  is  no  service  done  for  the  maiden.  The  arguments 
made  by  the  lovers,  and  the  later  decision  by  King  Vikra- 
maditya,  which  is  really  outside  the  true  confines  of  the 
story,  are  concerned  with  unapplied  accomplishments,  and 
Vikramaditya's  judgment  is  based  wholly  on  caste  or 
nobility. 

The  importance  attached  to  arguments  dealing  with  the 
nobility  of  the  suitors  in  the  Parlement  of  Foules  and  in 
the  Paradiso  bears  resemblance  to  the  emphasis  on  caste 
in  the  Vetdla  tale.  Especially  striking  is  the  likeness  of  j, 
the  argument  used  by  Mars  in  the  Paradiso  (namely,  that 
his  protege  and  Melissa  are  both  of  warrior  stock)  ^"^  to  the 
argument  of  King  Vikramaditya  that  the  lover  of  warrior 
caste  is  the  only  suitor  who  should  rightfully  marry  the 
maiden. 

In  the  Vetdla  tales  where  service  is  performed  we  have 
some  sort  of  arg-ument  by  the  lovers  implied  in  the  dispute 
which  arises  after  their  performances.  But  only  in  the 
seventh  tale  do  we  find  a  definite  set  of  pleadings  held 
before  a  judge  and  a  schematic  set  of  claims  made  by  each 
lover.  The  judge  is,  of  course,  the  king,  father  of  the 
princess.  This  court  scene  seems  to  represent  the  begin- 
nings of  a  later  elaborate  conception.  A  degree  of  sophis- 
tication has  magnified  to  large  proportions  the  court  and 
the  pleadings  before  the  judge  in  Giovanni  da  Prato  and 
Chaucer. 

"  Pub.  Mod.  Lang.  Assoc,  xxxn,  p.  499. 


258  WILLARD    EDWAED    FAENIIAM 

A  most  noteworthy  incident  in  the  Caste  tale  is  the 
perplexity  of  the  father  and  the  final  granting  of  self- 
choice  to  the  girl.  Here  is  a  sufficiently  imusual  folk-tale 
feature  which  caps  the  climax  and  makes  the  resemblance 
between  the  Vetdla,  tale  and  both  the  Paradiso  and  the 
Parlement  very  thorough-going. 

A  justifiable  contention  that  this  tale,  or,  indeed,  any 
other  of  The  Contending  Lovers,  might  have  had  entirely 
different  features  outside  a  collection  like  the  Vetdla- 
'pancliavmsati,  and  might  have  had  or  have  developed  a 
decisive  conclusion  that  was  part  of  the  tale  proper,  is 
militated  against  by  the  appearance  of  this  very  seventh 
Vetdla  tale  in  a  wholly  dissimilar  setting  within  the  Kathd- 
Sarit-Sdgara  (The  Ocean  of  the  Streams  of  Story),  the 
rich  twelfth-century  compilation  of  classic  tales.  All  four 
of  the  stories  of  The  Contending  Lovers  are  here,  and  they 
are  numbered  as  in  the  older  collection,  with  the  one  ex- 
ception that  Vetdla  7  is  here  the  ninth  tale.^^  In  each 
tale  the  number  of  lovers  is  as  it  was  before,  and  very  few 
changes  in  detail  are  made.  We  find  a  growth  in  the  court 
feature,  which  is  perhaps  the  most  outstanding  and  im- 
portant change.  In  the  later  work  the  lovers  in  every  tale 
except  that  of  the  exchanged  heads  make  set  speeches  and 
lay  their  claims  before  a  judge.  Among  these  tales,  then, 
is  the  Caste  story  which  we  are  discussing.^^  But  the 
Vetdla  cycle  of  stories  is  only  one  small  stream  flowing 
into  The  Ocean  of  the  Streams  of  Story,  and  we  find  our 
Caste  tale  a  second  time  in  this  work,  now  outside  the  old 
setting  and  in  a  place  where  there  is  no  need  on  the  part 

^^  Katlia-Barit-Sagara,  tr.  C.  H.  Tawney,  Calcutta,  1884,  n,  pp. 
242  ff. 

^*  Tawney,  li,  pp.  275  flf.  Worthy  of  note  is  one  change.  The  man 
of  knowledge  has  a  more  definite  accomplishment  than  before,  for 
he  can  restore  dead  creatures  to  life. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEES  259 

of  a  demon  to  make  a  hearer  break  silence.  In  its  new 
frame  it  is  called  The  Story  of  Anangarati  and  Her  Four 
Suitors.^^  The  tale  has  here  received  some  queer  twists, 
and  is  worth  summarizing. 

Anangarati  is  a  princess  of  far-famed  beauty  who  is  about  to 
marry.  She  declares  that  she  must  have  a  husband  who  is  brave  and 
handsome,  and  who  possesses  some  splendid  accomplishment.  Four 
heroes  present  themselves  before  the  father  of  the  princess.  These 
have  accomplishments  as  in  the  Vetala  tale  and  declare  them  in 
much  the  same  way,"  except  that  the  man  of  knowledge  claims  to 
know  the  art  of  raising  a  dead  woman  to  life.  The  king  asks  his 
daughter  which  suitor  she  prefers.  She  finds  fault  with  each;  the 
caste,  or  the  wealth,  or  the  general  merit  of  the  man  does  not  suit. 
She  can  make  no  decision.  Meanwhile  the  heroes  conduct  themselves 
nobly  in  the  chase  and  prove  great  valor.  After  the  king  requests 
that  his  daughter  reconsider  and  make  a  choice,  an  astrologer  is 
called.  Hesitatingly  he  announces  that  the  princess  shows  con- 
formity of  horoscope  with  none  of  the  heroes,  and  that  she  is  not  to 
be  married  on  this  earth  because  she  is  under  a  curse. 

At  the  end  of  three  months  the  maid  suddenly  dies.  The  brahman 
lover  who  can  raise  women  from  the  dead  hastens  to  apply  his  skill, 
but  is  unsuccessful.  Grieving  at  the  loss  of  the  maid  and  the  failure 
of  his  powers,  he  is  about  to  cut  off  his  head,  when  a  voice  from  the 
eky  tells  him  not  to  mourn,  for  the  maid  is  in  Heaven.  It  bids  him 
propitiate  a  certain  goddess  that  he  may  hold  hope  of  winning  the 
maid  in  another  life.  '  , 

This  version  shows  some  mixture  of  caste  and  service 
elements,  but  the  man  of  knowledge  fails  to  perform  the 
most  important  service  of  all.  The  conception  of  equal 
merit  among  the  suitors  is  drawn  out  and  played  with  in 
a  significant  way ;  for  not  only  are  the  claims  themselves 
so  much  alike  that  neither  the  princess  nor  the  king  can 
decide  the  case,  but  Heaven  itself  has  mysteriously  con- 
formed the  maiden's  horoscope  to  that  of  no  suitor,  and 
finally  takes  her  to  the  realmj  of  bliss  apparently  to  stop 
the  contention.    Again  the  feature  of  self-choice  appears, 

«  Tawney,  i,  pp.  498  ff. 

"  See  sununary  on  p.  255  above. 


260  WILLAKD    EDWARD    FARNIIAM 

and  is  even  made  more  of  tlian  in  the  original  Vetdla 
version. 

Althougli  this  double  appearance  of  the  Caste  tale  in 
the  Kathd-Sarit-Sdgara  would  seem  to  show  that  it  main- 
tained popularity  in  India  during  many  centuries,  never- 
theless it  is  the  tale  which  soon  begins  to  drop  out  of  other 
Oriental  collections.  In  the  Veddla  Cadai,  the  Tamul 
Vetdlapanchavinsati,  the  story  is  conspicuous  for  its  ab- 
sence. The  other  three  tales  of  The  Contending  Lovers 
are  there,  though  in  a  much  abbreviated  form.^^  The 
arguments  of  the  suitors  are  only  implied,  not  reproduced 
and  developed  as  in  the  Kathd-Sarit-Sdgara  tales. 

Somewhat  outside  the  ni/ain  group  which  is  to  be  fol- 
lowed into  Europe  through  iSanskrit,  Persian,  and  Arabic, 
stands  one  version  of  The  Contending  Lovers  in  the  Siddhi- 
Kur,  or  Mongolian  Vetdla  stories :  ^^ 

There  are  six  youths  who  are  boon  companions,  a  rich  man's  son, 
a  doctor's  son,  a  painter's  son,  an  accoimtant's  son,  a  woodcarver'a 
son,  and  a  smith's  son.  All  go  out  into  the  world  to  gain  their 
fortunes,  and  separate  at  a  place  where  six  streams  converge,  first, 
however,  placing  six  "  trees  of  life  "  at  the  point  of  convergence.  If 
one  of  them  shall  wither,  it  will  indicate  that  harm  has  befallen  that 
youth  to  whom  it  belongs. 

The  rich  man's  son  goes  to  another  land  and  marries  a  woman  of 
such  beauty  that  she  seems  unearthly.  But  a  powerful  clian  takes 
her  away  from  the  youth,  and  makes  her  his  own  wife,  eventually 
commanding  his  minions  to  make  way  with  the  rich  man's  son.  This 
is  done,  and  his  body  is  buried  beneath  a  rock.  Meanwhile  the 
companions  of  the  youth  find  the  withered  tree  and  set  out  to  follow 
the  stream  along  which  their  comrade  travelled.  The  accoimtant's 
son  makes  computations  that  allow  them  to  find  the  rock  under 


'^The  Vedala  Cadai,  tr.  B.  G.  Babington,  London,  1S31  {Misc. 
Trs,  from  Orient.  Langs.),  vol.  i;  Vedala  Cadai  2  is  Vctala  2, 
Vedala  Cadai  4  is  Vetala  5,  and  Vedala  Cadai  5  is  Vetala  6. 

*'B.  Jiilg,  Kahniicl-ische  Marchen,  Leipzig,  1866,  no.  1,  pp.  5  ff . 
The  tale  is  also  translated  in  Sagas  from  the  Far-East,  London,  1873, 
no.  9,  pp.  105  ff..  Five  to  One. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEES  2C1 

which  the  dead  man  is  buried,  and  the  smith's  son  cracks  it  into  bits 
with  his  hammer.  Tlie  physician's  son  gives  the  dead  man  a  potion 
which  brings  him  to  life.  At  once  the  resuscitated  young  man 
bewails  the  fact  that  his  wife  has  been  ravished  from  him,  and  the 
companions  volunteer  to  help  him  to  recover  her.  The  woodcarver's 
son  constructs  a  marvellous  Garuda-bird,  cutting  it  out  of  wood  and 
furnishing  it  with  springs  which  control  its  flight.  The  painter's 
son  adorns  this  so  skillfully  that  when  the  rich  man's  son  flies  in  it 
to  the  Chan's  palace,  the  latter  is  deceived,  and  thinks  it  truly  to  be 
the  heavenly  Garuda-bird.  He  sends  the  wife  up  to  the  roof  of  the 
palace  to  welcome  the  bird,  and  the  youth  takes  her  into  the  machine 
and  flies  away  with  her. 

But  when  the  companions  see  the  woman,  they  are  consumed  with 
love  for  her.  Each  maintains  that  he  has  first  claim  to  her  because 
of  his  contribution  to  the  rescue.  Finally  the  strife  leads  to  the 
drawing  of  knives,  and  between  them  they  cut  the  woman  into  bits. 

The  tale  is  in  a  framework  very  similar  to  that  which 
holds  the  Vetdia  stories,^'*  but  when  the  demon  in  this  case 
has  finished  his  narration,  the  king  breaks  silence  merely 
to  express  pity  for  the  woman.  That  this  particular  type 
of  The  Contending  Lovers  dealing  with  a  rescue  has  gone 
through  many  changes  since  it  has  left  India,  and  that  it 
has  in  the  course  of  its  travels  to  the  Mongols  picked  up 
some  new  material  from  the  general  stock  of  folk-lore,  is 
at  once  apparent.  The  trees  of  life,  or  their  counter- 
parts,^°  are  found  in  stories  which  can  have  had  nothing 
to  do  at  any  time  with  The  Contending  Lovers. 

The  tale  in  the  Siddhi-Kilr  has  been  made  more  com- 
plicated, and  in  a  sense  its  problem  has  been  debased,  by 
the  changes  which  have  been  made  in  the  number  and 
character  of  the  lovers.  Where  we  have  hitherto  found 
lovers  of  noble  blood,  we  now  find  artisans  and  sons  of  the 
people.    ISTobility  and  caste  now,  of  course,  have  no  bearing 

'^^  BiddM-Kilr  means  a  dead  body  endowed  with  supernatural 
powers,  substantially  a  demon  like  the  Vetdia. 

*^  Sometimes  knives   are   stuck   in  the   trees  to   indicate  by   rust 
harm  to  the  owners. 
2 


262  WILLARD    EDWARD    FARISrHAM 

at  all  upon  the  suits  preferred  by  the  youths.  Increasing 
the  number  of  lovers  is  a  simple  method  of  increasing  in- 
terest by  adding  material.  The  whole  tale  shows  evidences 
at  different  points  of  fusion  between  The  Contending 
Lovers  and  other  folk-tales. 

Nevertheless,  the  classification  of  the  version  is  not  diffi- 
cult, for  in  all  essentials  it  belongs  to  the  Eescue  type  of 
The  Contending  Lovers.  The  powerful  chdn  takes  the 
place  of  the  monster  which  abducts  the  girl  in  the  old 
Vetdla  Rescue  tale.  The  general  character  of  changes  due 
to  Mongolian  influence  has  been  well  pointed  out  by 
Benfey.^*^ 

Versions  in  the  Throne  Collections 

A  second  general  cycle  of  tales  clustering  around  the 
hero-king  Vikramaditya  is  supposed  to  be  told  by  different 
spirits  residing  in  Vikramaditya's  throne  many  years  after 
his  death.  N^o  tale  of  The  Contending  Lovers  appears  in 
the  Sanskrit  redaction,  and  but  one  is  to  be  found  in  the 
Mongolian.  In  the  Persian,  however,  are  four  well  devel- 
oped and  artistically  told  versions,  one  of  a  type  that  has 
not  been  met  before.  With  the  Throyisagen,  as  with  the 
Vetdla  stories,  we  are  dealing  with  folk-lore  which  is  dif- 
ficult to  date,  but  which  doubtless  is  very  old. 

Although  the  Sanskrit  Sinhdsana-dvdtrinsati  (Thirty- 
two  Tales  of  a  Throne)  affords  no  tale  of  The  Contending 
Lovers  in  either  the  Jainica  recension  -"^  or  the  Bengali 
translation  known  as  the  Batris-SinhasanJ^^  yet  it  does 
offer  certain  elements  which  may  be  used  to  explain  the 
acquisition  of  the  tales  of  contending  lovers  by  the  later 
redactions.     The  framework  of  the  cycle  is  simple  in  the 

^  Ausland  essay,  Klcinere  Schriften,  n,  iii,  pp.  103  ff. 
2^Tr.  A.  Weber,  Indische  Studien,  XV  (1878),  pp.  184  flf. 
«« Tr.  Ldon  Feer,  Paris,  1S83. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEES  263 

earliest  form  we  know,  and  changes  very  little  as  it  is 
reworked.    In  the  Sanskrit  it  is  briefly  this : 

King  Bhoja  finds  tlie  throne  of  his  glorious  predecessor  Vikrama- 
ditya  and  wishes  to  ascend  it,  hut  is  hindered  on  thirty-two  attempts, 
each  time  by  a  spirit  who  dwells  in  one  of  the  thirty-two  statues 
decorating  the  throne.  He  is  told  that  Vikramaditya  pleased  the 
gods  by  his  wonderful  reign,  and  that  the  throne  was  buried  at  his 
death.  Each  time  the  new  king  tries  to  ascend  the  throne  he  is  told 
a  story  about  its  first  possessor  intended  to  show  how  wonderful 
that  monarch  was  and  how  unworthy  he,  the  new  aspirant,  is  of 
occupying  the  hero's  seat.  Finally  the  spirits  depart,  having  fulfilled 
their  mission  of  instruction,  and  Bhoja  ascends  the  throne. 

jSTaturally  this  framework  by  its  associations  with  Vikra- 
maditya might  draw  over  to  it  some  of  the  Vetdla  tales. 

But  the  amusing  and  popular  tale  of  lovers'  contention 
found  in  the  Ardsclii-Bonlsclii-Chan,~^  the  Mongolian  col- 
lection of  the  Throne  stories,  is  not  one  of  those  in  the 
Vetdlapancliavinsati: 

Ardschi-Bordschi  learns  that  in  a  certain  place  the  haughty  and 
beautiful  anchoress  Xaran-Chatun  sits  in  silence,  and  that  whoever 
can  make  her  speak  twice  may  gain  her  as  his  wife.  The  chan  goes 
to  her  with  four  companions,  whom  by  magic  power  he  transforms 
into  articles  in  and  around  the  altar  of  Naran-Chatun.  Then  he 
tells  two  problem  stories,  and  each  time  his  companions  disgust  the 
anchoress  so  much  by  their  discussion  of  the  problem  that  she  delivers 
her  own  opinion,  and  breaks  silence.    One  of  these  stories  is  our  tale : 

Four  youths  of  four  tribes  go  to  mind  their  ftocics.  During  the 
weary  watches  one  passes  the  time  by  hewing  the  figure  of  a  woman 
out  of  wood,  and  leaves  it  where  he  has  made  it.  The  second  youth 
finds  it  and  paints  it  in  life-like  colors,  also  going  away  and  leaving 
his  work.  The  third  endows  it  wath  wit  and  understanding,  and  the 
fourth,  thinking  it  a  pity  that  such  a  creation  should  remain  nothing 
but  wood,  touches  his  lips  to  those  of  the  statue  and  breathes  into 
the  figure  the  breath  of  life,  making  it  a  woman  capable  of  loving. 
Now  each  youth  claims  the  woman  for  his  own,  and  the  dispute  is 
taken  to  the  king  for  decision. 


^B.  Jiilg,  MongoliscJie  MarcJien-Sammlmig,  1868,  pp.  238  ff.     Also 
in  Sagas  from  the  Far  East,  1873,  pp.  298  ff. 


264  WILLAED    EDWAED    FAENHAM 

After  the  narration  of  the  above  tale  the  objects  around 
Naran-Chatun's  altar  argue  the  case^  and  each  upholds  the 
claims  of  a  lover.  ISTaran-Chatun  finally  declares  for  the 
fourth  suitor. 

An  entirely  new  form  of  The  Contending  Lovers,  which 
we  may  designate  the  Creation  type,  here  comes  to  light 
for  the  first  time.  Whether  or  not  it  is  as  old  as  the  other 
types  we  cannot  say,  nor  can  we  say  for  certain  how  it 
reached  the  Mongols.  Probably,  however,  it  is  as  much  a 
native  of  India  as  those  versions  found  in  the  Vetdla- 
imncliavinsati,  for  it  appears  in  collections  in  other  Ori- 
ental languages  which  certainly  draw  material  from  India. 
One  of  these  compilations  is  the  Senguehassen-Battissi,  to 
which  we  shall  now  turn. 

The  Persian  Sengueliassen-Battissi  has  substantially  the 
same  frame  to  hold  its  thirty-two  tales  as  the  Sanskrit 
Throne  collection.  King  Bhoja,  the  aspirant  to  Vikra- 
maditya's  throne,  becomes  the  Rajah  Behoudje,  and  the 
talcs  are  told  to  him  by  thirty-two  genies.  The  four  ver- 
sions of  The  Contending  Lovers  are  in  a  frame  within  a 
frame,  very  much  as  in  the  Ardschi-Bordschi-Chan,  and 
together  form  the  tenth  tale  of  the  work :  ^'^ 

The  Rajah  B^kermadjiet  (Vikramaditya)  goes  to  the  palace  of  a 
famous  queen  and  wins  her  for  another  love-sick  rajah  by  making 
her  break  silence  four  times  in  one  night.  To  do  this  the  rajah  tells 
four  stories.  After  each  relation  he  asks  the  lamp,  or  the  queen's 
girdle,  or  some  one  of  the  other  articles  in  which  one  of  his  friendly 
genies  are  residing  what  it  thinks  of  the  problem  raised  by  the  tale. 
Invariably  the  queen  is  dissatisfied  with  the  answer  given  and  passes 
her  own  opinion,  roundly  berating  the  article  for  its  foolish  judg- 
ment. 

The  first  of  Bekermadj let's  tales  is  a  Rescue  version  of 
The  Contending  Lovers.    It  is  substantially  the  same  talc 

'"Tr.  Baron  Lescailler,  Le  Trdne  Enchants,  New  York,  1817,  I, 
pp.  177  flf. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEKS  265 

as  the  Rescue  version  in  the  V etalapancliavinsati,  for  the 
lovers  possess  the  same  accomplishments  and  prosecute 
their  rescue  in  the  same  way,  except  that  a  m,agic  horse 
takes  the  place  of  a  magic  chariot.  But  a  very  noteworthy 
change  is  the  addition  of  the  episode  of  self-choice,  which 
is  found  only  in  the  Caste  tale  of  the  Vetdla  collection. 
Moreover,  the  maid  asks  time  to  make  this  choice.  The 
exact  words  of  the  translation  are  these :  "  Le  marchand 
fit  part  a  sa  fille  des  propositions,  et  des  differens  talens 
des  trois  jeunes  gens  qui  pretendoient  a  sa  main;  elle 
demanda  jusqu'au  lendemain  pour  faire  connoitre  sa  re- 
ponse."  ^^ 

The  opportunity  to  suggest  a  comparison  of  this  with 
the  formel's  request  for  delay  in  the  Parlement  of  Foules 
is  irresistible. 

The  second  tale  told  hy  Bekermadjiet  to  the  queen  is 
that  of  the  mixed  heads.  It  is  almost  the  same  story  as 
that  in  the  Vetdlapanchavinsati.  At  its  conclusion  the 
queen's  girdle  expresses  the  opinion  that  the  woman  is 
rightfully  the  wife  of  the  body,  and  the  queen  angrily 
declares  for  the  head  as  the  seat  of  understanding. 

The  third  tale  is  a  Resuscitation  version : 

\\Tien,  a  girl's  corpse  is  being  borne  to  tlie  burial  ground,  one 
suitor  obtains  permission  to  raise  the  covering  on  tbe  bier  and  take 
one  last  look  at  the  loved  one.  The  second  suitor,  a  physician, 
approaches  and  discovers  signs  of  life.  He  proposes  ceremonies  that 
will  restore  the  girl  to  full  health,  and  the  third  suitor  carries  these 
out.  An  argument  follows,  and  each  suitor  presents  his  claims 
before  the  parents. 

At  B6kermadjiet's  question  the  vase  decides  for  the  man  who 
raised  the  covering  of  the  bier,  and  the  queen  then  breaks  silence  a 
third  time  to  say  that  anyone  of  understanding  can  see  that  the  girl 
belongs  to  the  suitor  wlio  performed  the  resuscitation  ceremonies. 
Her  reasons  are  that  the  first  suitor  is  already  recompensed  by  the 


**  Lescailler,  i,  pp.  191-2. 


2GG  WILLABD    EDWAED    FAENIIAM 

sight  of  the  girl,  and  that  the  second  is  rewarded  by  the  reputation 
arising  from  his  having  prescribed  tlie  cure,  whereas  the  third  youth 
can  only  be  rewarded  by  the  girl  herself. 

Instead  of  collecting  the  maiden's  ashes  as  in  the  Vetdla- 
pancJiavinsatij  the  lover  who  makes  the  resuscitation  pos- 
sible here  pcrformis  a  service  that  is  even  more  fortuitous 
bj  raising  the  covering  on  the  bier.  It  is  through  no  skill 
or  forethought  on  his  part  that  the  maiden  is  found  to  show 
signs  of  life. 

The  fourth  and  last  tale  told  to  the  queen  is  of  the 
Creation  type.  This  version  of  the  wooden  woman  story 
is  more  expanded  than  that  in  the  Ardschi-Bordschi-Chdn, 
and  a  few  changes  have  been  made.  The  painter  has  be- 
come a  jeweler,  and  the  man  Avho  gives  wit  and  under- 
standing has  become  a  clothier.  Certainly  it  would  be 
highly  interesting  to  know  where  the  Creation  type  joined 
our  stories.  The  other  three  tales  of  The  Contending 
Lovers  in  the  Persian  show  clearly  a  close  relation  to 
Indian  sources,  though,  as  it  happens,  not  to  the  Indian 
Throne  stories,  but  to  the  Vetdla.  It  is  highly  probable 
that  there  was  a  Sanskrit  version  of  the  Creation  type 
which  we  do  not  now  know. 

Veesions  in  the  Tilti-Ndma 

Our  tale  now  loses  all  relation  with  Vikramaditya,  and 
is  more  or  less  cleverly  fitted  into  frameworks  quite  dif- 
ferent from  those  of  the  Vetdlapanchavinsati  or  the 
Senguehassen-Battissl.  It  has  now  become  well  acclimated 
in  Persian  territory,  and  has  thus  alni,ost  completed  an 
important  leg  of  its  journey  toward  Europe. 

A  Persian  story  compilation  which  probably  draws 
material  from  some  of  the  oldest  Indian  sources  is  the 
Tuti-Nama.  It  has  a  Sanskrit  prototype  in  the  (Jiika- 
saptati,  but  for  the  tale  of  The  Contending  Lovers  the 


o 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVERS  267 

Persian  redaction  is  the  one  of  real  importance.^^  This 
furnishes  three  types  of  our  story,  and  one  of  the  three  is 
u  Creation  version,  which  would  seem  to  have  been  popular 
ct  the  time  Persian  rifacimenti  of  Indian  works  were  in 
the  process  of  making. 

The  age  and  author  of  the  (Jukasaptati  have  not  been 
determined.  It  takes  its  name  (meaning  The  Seventy 
Tales  of  a  Parrot)  from  the  supposed  telling  of  the  stories 
to  a  woman  by  a  parrot,  and  the  framework  is  funda- 
mentally the  same  for  both  Sanskrit  and  Persian  works. 
A  merchant  goes  away  on  a  journey,  and  the  wife  immedi- 
ately allows  her  thoughts  to  turn  to  the  joys  she  may  have 
with  a  lover.  A  parrot  who  belongs  to  the  husband  cleverly 
detains  the  womjan  from  wrong-doing  by  telling  one  or 
ujore  tales  each  night  as  she  is  about  to  go  to  meet  her 
paramour.  In  the  Sanskrit  the  tales  are  seventy,  the  gen- 
eral plan  calling  for  one  relation  each  night,  but  in  the 
Persian  of  Zijai-ed-din-lSTachshebi,  probably  of  the  begin- 
ning of  the  fourteenth  century,  the  nights  are  reduced  to 
fifty-two  and  more  than  one  tale  is  given  each  night.  In 
later  versions  the  nights  are  yet  more  reduced,  while  as 
many  as  five  and  six  tales  are  told  in  one  night.  Such  is 
the  case  in  the  Turkish  version.^^ 

Notwithstanding  the  similarity  in  general  plan  between 
the  Sanskrit  and  Persian  works,  neither  in  the  Textus 
Simplicior,^'*  nor  in  the  Textus  Ornatior  ^^  of  the  Sanskrit 

^^  For  a  complete  discussion  of  the  versions  of  the  Ttiti-Ndma  see 
Benfey,  Gottingische  gelehrte  Anzeigen,  1858,  pp.  52911.,  (Kleinere 
Schriften,  Ii,  iii,  pp.  64  ff.), 

^  Tfitl-Nameh  (Das  Papagaienluch) ,  translated  by  Georg  Rosen, 
1858. 

^Die  Qul-asaptati  (Textus  Simplicior)  aus  dem  Sanskrit  iiber- 
setzt  von  Richard  Schmidt,  Kiel,  1894. 

^Der  Textus  Ornatior  dcr  (Jiikasaptati,  von  Richard  Sclrmidt, 
Stuttgart,  1896. 


268  WILLAED    EDWAED    FAENHAM 

is  any  trace  of  our  tale  to  be  discovered.  That  the  parrot's 
stock  of  tales  should  eventually  attract  T'Jie  Contending 
Lovers  with  its  problems  and  its  indecisive  conclusion  is 
natural,  however,  for  this  framework  would  welcome  its 
incorporation  as  much  as  the  Throne  framework.  In  the 
QuJcasaptati  the  parrot  usually  tells  his  tale  up  to  the  most 
interesting  point  and  then  hesitates  until  the  merchant's 
wife,  Prabhavati,  has  asked  him  to  tell  the  ending.  How 
well  our  tale  will  fit  such  a  scheme  may  be  easily  seen. 

The  tales  of  the  Tuti-Ndma  which  I  shall  discuss  appear 
in  a  Persian  version  in  which  the  parrot's  stories  have  been 
reduced  to  thirty-five^**  and  which  was  probably  made  in 
the  seventeenth  century  as  an  abridgment  of  the  Persian 
of  Nachshebi.^'''  Because  they  have  by  now  become  famil- 
iar, I  shall  try  to  present  them  in.  the  briefest  possible 
form.  The  fifth  of  the  collection  is  the  tale  of  the  wooden 
woman :  ^^ 

A  goldsmith,  a  carpenter,  a  tailor,  and  a  hermit  are  keeping  watch 
by  turn  one  night  in  a  desert  place.  Each  contributes  of  his  ability 
and  helps  to  make  a  beautiful  woman,  the  carpenter  beginning  with 
a  block  of  wood,  and  the  hermit  bringing  this  to  life.  The  inevitable 
dispute  arises. 

Thus  far  the  story  is  as  we  have  found  it  before  with  only  slight 
changes.  But  the  conclusion  takes  a  new  and  amusing  turn.  In 
the  words  of  the  translation  we  are  told:  "  In  short,  this  dispute  had 
continued  a  long  time  when  accidentally  there  came  to  the  spot  a 
person  whom  they  desired  to  do  justice  between  them.  When  this 
man  saw  the  woman's  face,  he  exclaimed,  '  This  is  my  lawful  spouse, 
whom  you  have  seduced  from  my  house,  and  separated  from  me,' 
After  this  manner  he  seized  and  carried  them  before  the  Cutwal. 
When  the  Cutwal  beheld  the  woman's  countenance,  he  cried  out, 
'This  is  my  brother's  wife,  whom  he  took  with  him  on  a  journey; 
you   have   killed   my   brother,    and   taken   the   woman   by   force.' " 


*"  The  Tooti  Nameh  or  Tales  of  a  Parrot,  translated  for  J.  Debrett, 
London,  1801. 

*'See  Benfey,  Eleinere  Scliriften,  ii,  iii,  p.  66. 
*  Translation  for  Debrett,  pp.  49  flF. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVERS  269 

Finally  the  Cazy  claims  the  woman  as  his  bondmaid,  and  the  four 
suitors  of  the  original  dispute  have  been  augmented  to  seven.  An 
old  man  now  recommends  submission  of  the  case  to  the  Tree  of 
Decision.  The  tale  concludes :  "  To  shorten  the  story,  these  seven 
men  went  under  the  tree,  and  also  carried  the  woman  along  with 
them;  and  each  of  them  set  forth  the  circumstances  of  his  particular 
case.  On  the  instant,  the  trunk  of  the  tree  divided  asunder,  and  the 
woman  ran  into  the  cleft,  upon  which  the  tree  united,  and  she  disap- 
peared. A  voice  proceeded  from  the  tree,  (saying)  that  everything 
returns  to  first  principles;  and  the  seven  suitors  for  the  woman  were 
overwhelmed  with  shame."  " 

As  we  found  our  Caste  tale  from  the  VetdlapancJia- 
vin~sati  amplified  in  the  Katlia-Sarit-Sdgara,  and  the  idea 
of  the  impossibility  of  decision  much  dwelt  upon,  here  we 
meet  the  Creation  tale  under  the  same  circumstances. 
The  problem  gets  worse  and  worse  and  the  suitors  more 
numerous  as  the  disputants  go  from  judge  to  judge,  and 
finally  the  woman  is  turned  back  into  wood,  it  being 
thereby  implied  that  the  problem  is  in  fact  incapable  of 
solution. 

The  parrot  begins  the  twenty-second  tale,  which  is  of  the 
now  well-established  Rescue  type,  after  this  fashion :  "  My 
mistress,  go  this  time  to  the  house  of  your  lover,  and  relate 
to  him  the  story  of  the  merchant's  daughter  in  order  to  try 
his  understanding.  If  he  gives  you  a  proper  answer,  you 
may  esteem  him  wise."  The  tale  thus  is  a  hoax  to  be  used 
as  a  test.^*^  It  has  few  new  features  and  need  not  be 
summarized. 

For  the  testing  of  the  lover's  wisdom  the  parrot  also 
recommends  the  telling  of  the  twenty-fourth  tale,  which 
deals  with  the  mjixed  heads :  *^ 

A  king's  son  vows  to  a  god  that  if  he  obtains  his  loved  one  he  will 


^This  tale  appears  in  Rosen's  Turkish  version,  Theil  i,  pp.  151  ff. 
^Translation  for  Debrett,  pp.  113  flf.    See  Rosen,  n,  pp.  165  flf.  for 
the  Turkish  version. 
«  Translation  for  Debrett,  pp.  122  if. 


270  WILLARD   EDWAED   FAENHAM 

sacrifice  his  head.  He  marries  her  and  later  makes  a  journey  to  his 
father-in-law  with  his  new  wife  and  a  friend.  The  two  men  decapi- 
tate themselves  just  as  in  stories  of  this  type  previously  cited,  and 
the  woman  mixes  heads  when  she  comes  to  put  them  back.  Then 
begins  "  a  dispute  between  the  prince's  body  and  the  brahmin's  head, 
each  claiming  her  for  his  wife." 

In  answer  to  Khojisteh's  question,  the  parrot  gives  what  he 
regards  as  the  correct  solution :  "  The  rightful  owner  of  that  woman 
is  the  husband's  head,  because  the  head  is  the  seat  of  wisdom,  and 
presides  over  the  body."** 

The  Resuscitation  tale  is  missing  from  versions  of  the 
Tuti-Ndma  to  which  I  have  had  access.  It  is  possible  that 
it  appears  in  some  collection  which  is  not  abridged. 

The  principal  contribution  of  the  Tuti-Ndma  to  The 
Contending  Lovers  is  the  interesting  conclusion  added  to 
the  Creation  type.  It  is  significant,  however,  that  the  par- 
rot recommends  two  of  the  tales  as  means  by  which  to  test 
the  perspicacity  of  Khojisteh's  lover.  Clearly  the  bird 
regards  them  as  problem  stories,  and  the  fact  that  he  gives 
an  opinion  of  his  own  as  to  the  way  they  should  be  solved 
would  not  hinder  the  holding  of  different  opinions  by 
readers  of  the  tales. 

The  Version  in  the  Sindihad-Ndma 

There  remains  another  Persian  version  of  our  tale  to 
consider.  It  furnishes  at  least  one  important  variation, 
and  we  have  now  reached  a  point  where  anything  new  may 
bear  fruit  nuany  fold  after  its  seed  has  been  sown  on  Euro- 
pean soil.  In  the  8indihdd-Ndma,  or  Booh  of  Sindihdd, 
a  Persian  redaction  of  the  Seven  Wise  Masters,  is  a  tale 
of  The  Contending  Lovers  which  shows  evidence  of  change 
and  combination  due  to  contact  with  other  folk-tales.  It 
is  one  of  the  final  tales  told  by  the  prince :  ^^ 

"See  Rosen,  ii,  pp.  169  IT.  for  the  Turkish  version. 

«  W.  A.  Clouston,  The  Book  of  BindiUd,  1884,  pp.  106  ff.  The  tale 
does  not  occur  in  other  important  eastern  texts  of  the  Seven  Wise 
Masters.    See  the  comparative  table  at  the  beginning  of  the  work. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVERS  271 

A  king  has  a  beautiful  daughter  who  is  carried  ofT  by  a  div 
(corresponding  to  the  Hindu  rakshusa) .  He  promises  to  give  half 
his  kingdom  and  the  daughter  in  marriage  to  anyone  who  will  rescue 
her.  There  are  in  his  city  four  brothers  with  peculiar  gifts  who  are 
ready  to  undertake  the  task.  One  is  a  guide  who  has  travelled  all 
over  the  world,  one  is  a  daring  freebooter,  who  is  capable  of  taking 
the  prey  from  the  lion's  mouth  if  necessary,  one  is  a  daring  cavalier 
and  fighter,  and  the  last  is  a  physician  of  wondrous  power.  The 
guide  finds  the  maid  in  a  cave  within  a  mountain,  the  freebooter 
steals  her,  the  warrior  slays  demons  who  pursue  the  companions,  and 
the  physician  revives  the  maid  when  it  is  fovmd  that  she  is  seriously 
ill.  The  king  gives  rewards  to  all,  but  gives  the  daughter  and  the 
throne  to  the  warrior. 

The  tale  is  a  misfit,  it  would  seem,  in  tlie  framework  of 
the  Seven  Wise  Masters,  l^o  strife  is  said  to  have  occurred 
between  the  lovers,  and  there  is  small  matter  for  a  problem, 
since  the  king  has  no  difficulty  in  choosing  the  warrior  as 
the  most  meritorious.  But  it  is  important  to  note  the  addi-' 
tion  to  the  ranks  of  the  lovers  of  one  man  boasting  a  novel 
profession,  that  of  thievery,  and  also  the  addition  of  a  new 
episode  in  the  slaying  of  pursuing  demons  by  the  warrior, 
!Meither  the  thief  nor  the  pursuing  demons  have  been  met 
before  in  our  tale,  and  both  of  these  innovations  will  be 
found  immensely  popular  in  Europe.  Although  the  ver- 
sion is  primarily  of  the  Rescue  type,  there  is  some  tele- 
scoping of  Rescue  and  Resuscitation  themes,  and  this  gives 
the  maid  a  chance  to  be  both  taken  from  the  demon  by  one 
brave  hero  and  cured  from  a  dangerous  illness  by  another. 

The  Version  in  the  Thousand  and  One  Nights 

In  the  Arabian  Thousand  a7id  One  Nights,  The  Con- 
tending Lovers  is  mingled  with  another  tale  to  form  the 
story  of  Prince  Ahmed  and  the  Fay  Pari-Banou.  The 
first  part  of  this  is  plainly  a  story  with  close  similarities 
to  the  Resuscitation  type;  the  second  belongs  to  quite  a 


272  WILLAED    EDWAED    FAENHAM 

different  class  of  tales,  as  Cosquin  has  sliown.'*^  The  ver- 
sion represented  by  the  introduction  to  the  Prince  Ahmed 
story  has  had  enormous  influence  on  European  folk- 
literature,  a  fact  to  which  numerous  descendants  of  the 
type  will  be  found  to  testify.  Many  of  these  seem  almost 
certainly  to  have  been  subjected  to  no  means  of  trans- 
laission  except  that  by  word  of  mouth,  but  some  are  imder 
suspicion  of  having  been  adopted  into  circulation  among 
the  folk  from  Galland's  Les  Mille  et  Une  Nuits.^^  The 
tale  is  this:^« 

A  sultan  takes  his  niece  Nourounniliar  to  rear  in  his  own  house- 
hofd  after  her  father's  death.  On  perceiving  that  his  three  sons, 
Houssain,  Ali,  and  Ahmed,  are  all  enamoured  of  her,  he  tries  vainly 
to  show  that  three  men  cannot  marry  one  maiden,  and  that  they 
should  conquer  their  passions.  Finally  he  proposes  that  each  one 
shall  travel  to  a  different  country  and  return  with  a  rare  and 
extraordinary  thing.  He  who  obtains  the  most  rare  and  singular 
article  shall  marry  the  princess. 

Houssain,  the  eldest,  goes  to  the  city  of  Bisnagar,  and  buys  there 
a  carpet  wherewith  one  may  transport  one's  self  instantly  wherever 
one  wishes'  to  go  merely  by  forming  the  wish. 

Ali  goes  to  Schiraz,  the  capital  of  Persia,  where  he  buys  a  tube  of 
ivory  through  which  one  may  see  whatever  one  wishes  in  any  part  of 
the  world. 


**  Revue  des  Traditions  populaires,  xxxi  (1916),  pp.  98  ff.,  and 
pp.  145  ff. 

^  This  tale  with  the  adventures  of  Prince  Ahmed  is  one  of  those  in 
Galland's  work  which  can  now  be  found  in  no  Oriental  original. 
Galland,  it  was  even  thought  at  one  time,  might  have  constructed 
the  tale  himself,  but  it  is  now  thought  by  many  that  such  a  suspicion 
is  groundless.  For  his  edition  Burton  translates  it  in  roundabout 
fashion  from  a  Hindustani  translation  of  Galland  in  order  to  get  rid 
of  "  inordinate  Gallicism."  Cosquin's  ire  is  considerably  aroused  at 
this  attitude  {Revue  des  Traditions  populaires,  xxxi,  pp.  116  ff.), 
and  somewhat  justly,  since  after  all  Galland's  French  is  the  closest 
text  we  have  to  what  is  probably  a  genuine  Oriental  story.  Clouston 
in  his  note  to  the  tale  in  Burton  expresses  wonder  that  anyone 
should  accuse  Galland  of  fabricating  a  tale  that  rings  so  true.  See 
Burton,  Supplemental  Nights,  Appendix,  rn,  p.  600. 

*^  Galland,  ed.  1881,  x,  pp.  1  ff. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVERS  2'73 

Alimed,  the  youngest,  goes  to  Samarcande,  where  he  buys  a  pecu- 
liar apple  of  which  anyone  who  is  ill  has  but  to  smell,  and  he  will 
then  be  cured. 

Sfter  a  time  the  brothers  meet  and  display  their  rare  articles. 
But  by  means  of  his  telescope  Ali  suddenly  sees  that  the  princess 
is  at  the  point  of  death.  Houssain  offers  the  use  of  his  carpet  by 
which  the  brothers  are  at  once  transported  to  the  palace.  Ahmed 
then  cures  the  princess  with  his  apple. 

Each  lays  claim  to  tlie  maid,  but  the  sultain  says,  "  Ainsi,  comme 
ni  le  tapis  ni  le  tuyau  d'ivorie,  ni  la  pomme  artificielle  ne  donnent 
pas  la  uioindre  preference  il  I'un  plus  qu'i\  I'autre,  mais  au  contraire 
une  parfaite  ggalite  a  chacun,  et  que  je  ne  puis  accorder  la  princesse 
Nourounnihar  qu'a  un  seul,  vous  voyez  vous-memes  que  le  seul  fruit 
que  vous  avez  rapports  de  votre  voyage  est  la  gloire  d'avoir  con- 
tribu6  ggalement  a  lui  rendre  la  sant^." 

■Consequentiy  tlie  sultan  finds  a  new  way  to  decide  which 
one  of  his  sons  shall  marry  his  niece.  JSTow  follows  the 
second  part  of  the  tale,  and  this  part  must  really  be  re- 
garded as  the  central  story  to  which  the  account  of  the 
resuscitation  of  the  princess  has  been  attached  as  a  mere 
opening  episode.  The  sultan  decrees  an  archery  contest, 
and  promises  that  the  son  who  shoots  farthest  shall  be 
chosen.  Ahmed's  arrow  is  lost,  and  in  his  search  for  it  he 
is  led  to  the  retreat  of  the  fay  Pari-Banou.  This  part  of 
the  tale  has,  of  course,  no  importance  for  our  discussion. 

Although  I  have  indicated  that  the  Story  of  Prince 
Ahmed  is  in  its  first  part  close  to  the  Resuscitation  type  of 
The  Contending  Lovers,  it  may  be  easily  seen  that  the 
Rescue  type  has  also  exercised  its  influence  in  certain  de- 
tails. The  first  two  lovers  are  recognizable  as  the  man  of 
knowledge  and  the  speedy  traveller  who  play  parts  in 
rescuing  the  maiden  from  a  monster  in  the  oldest  versions. 
A  most  important  change  is  that  by  which  the  lovers  are 
made  to  perform  their  services  through  the  utilization  of 
magic  things  instead  of  magic  powers.  We  have  met  be- 
fore magic  things  which  are  used  together  with  magic 
powers;  the  swfit  chariot  or  magic  horse  of  the  Rescue 


274  WILLABD    EDWARD    FARNHAM 

tale  is  one  of  these.  But  in  the  Arabic  tale  there  is  no 
trace  of  any  magic  powers  or  skilled  accomplishments.  It 
is  noteworthy  that  here  for  the  first  time  the  suitors  are 
brothers.  This  is  due  to  a  borrowing  from  other  folk- 
tales,*'^ but  so  popular  did  the  feature  become  that  in 
Europe  the  lovers  of  all  types  of  The  Contending  Lovers 
are  very  often  brothers.  However,  it  is  by  no  means  to  be 
supposed  that  all  later  versions  in  which  the  lovers  are 
brothers  are  under  influence  from  the  tale  recorded  in  the 
Thousand  and  Oyie  Nights. 

Definition  of  Types 

During  the  examination  of  Oriental  sources  for  The 
Contending  Lovers  which  has  just  been  concluded  I  have 
tried  to  designate  the  salient  features  of  the  various  ver- 
sions, and  to  emphasize  the  hoax  or  problem  characteristics 
for  all.  We  are  now  prepared  to  marshal  the  results  of 
our  investigation,  and  to  arrange  the  versions  of  the  tale 
with  which  we  are  dealing  according  to  a  few  sharply 
defined  types. 

Roughly  generalized,  the  arguments  of  the  lovers  are 
found  to  rest  upon  three  different  classes  of  things :  first, 
services  which  are  due  to  skill  or  knowledge;  secondly, 
services  which  are  not  due  to  skill,  and  which  are  often 
more  or  less  fortuitous ;  thirdly,  inherent  worth,  sometimes 
thought  of  as  evidenced  by  nobility. 

However,  although  it  is  instructive  to  keep  in  mind  the 
character  of  the  lover's  claims,  the  versions  of  The  Con- 
tending Lovers  are  best  classified  in  another  way.  I  make 
five  sub-divisions,  not  maintaining  that  they  represent 
absolutely  pure  types  among  which  there  is  no  interchange, 
but  only  that  they  are  to  all  intents  independent  in  the 

*'  For  a  discussion  of  this  matter  see  pp.  305  ff.  below. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEES  275 

Orient,  and  tliat  tlieir  definition  will  prove  of  great  value 
in  the  classification  and  study  of  tlie  tale  for  Europe. 

I.  The  Besusciiation  Type.'^^  In  its  most  usual  form 
this  type  has  three  well-born  lovers.  Their  claims  may 
vary.  IToAvever,  each  youth  must  contribute  something 
toward  the  resuscitation  of  a  maiden,  who  is  often  a  prin- 
cess (not  so  in  Senguehassen-Battissi^  tale  10,  part  3),  and 
who  may  be  dead  (Vetdla  2),  or  sick  to  the  point  of  death 
{Bool:  of  Sindihad  and  Thousand  and  One  Nights).  The 
services  may  be  skilled  (third  lover  of  Vetdla  2),  or  un- 
skilled and  fortuitous  (first  and  second  lovers  of  Sengue- 
hassen-Battissi,  tale  10,  part  1 ;  Thousand  and  One 
Nights) . 

II.  The  Bescue  Type.'^^  The  usual  number  of  lovers 
is  three,  but  may  be  four  (Book  of  Sindibdd),  or  even  six 
(8iddhi-Kur) .  They  claim  the  maiden,  here  also  usually 
a  princess,  because  each  through  his  exceptional  gifts  has 
been  able  to  contribute  skilled  services  toward  her  rescue 
from  a  demon  (Vetdla  5),  magician  (Senguehassen- 
Battissi,  tale  10,  part  1),  powerful  king  (Siddhi-Kur) . 
Three  lovers  may  be  regarded  as  the  early  nucleus :  a  man 
of  knowledge,  a  fast  traveller,  and  a  man  of  war.  Others 
may  be  added,  however  (Siddhi-Kilr;  Booh  of  Sindihad). 

III.  The  Head  Type.  N'o  services  are  performed. 
The  controversy  grows  out  of  a  mistake  made  by  a  woman 
in  mixing  the  heads  of  husband  and  friend,  and  placing 
them  on  the  wrong  bodies.  It  is  really,  then,  a  form  of 
argument  between  two  mjembers  of  the  body  as  to  inherent 

^8 1  do  not  pretend  to  make  a  complete  collation  of  incidents  for 
the  following  simimaries.  Eeferences  to  tales  are  given  merely  as 
examples. 

*»This  is  the  type  in  which  Benfey  finds  the  beginnings  of  Das 
Marchen  von  "  den  Menschen  mit  den  wunderbaren  Eujcnschaftcn." 
Consequently  it  is  the  type  which  has  attracted  to  itself  most 
scholarly  interest. 


276  WILLARD    EDWARD    FARNHAM 

worth.    The  lover  who  cuts  off  his  head  may  be  a  man  of 
low  degree  (Vetdla  G)  or  a  prince  (Tuti-Ndma  24). 

IV.  The  Caste  T^ype.  No  services  are  performed  for 
the  princess  by  her  lovers,  who  are  four,  and  base  their 
claims  on  unapplied  accomplishments.  The  caste  of  the 
suitors  is  also  important  when  merit  comes  to  be  consid- 
ered. The  youths  are  a  weaver,  a  man  who  understands 
the  language  of  animals  {Vetdla  7),  a  man  of  knowledge 
{Vetdla  7)  who  may  be  able  to  raise  a  dead  woman  to  life 
{Kathd-Sarit-Sdgara,  tale  independent  of  the  Vetdla 
framework),  and  a  warrior.  The  king  is  perplexed  and 
gives  his  daughter  her  own  choice.  She  is,  however,  unable 
to  make  a  decision. 

V.  The  Creation  Type.  Four  young  men  dispute 
about  the  possession  of  a  woman  because  each  has  con- 
tributed something  to  her  creation.  The  first  hews  a  figure 
out  of  wood,  the  second  paints  it  (Ardschi-Bordschi-Chdn) 
or  bejewels  it  (Senguehassen-Battissi,  tale  10,  part  3 ; 
Tuti-Ndma  5),  the  third  gives  will  and  understanding 
(Ardschi-Bordschi-Chdn)  or  clothes  it  (Senguehassen- 
Battissi,  tale  10,  part  3;  Tuti-Ndma  5),  and  the  fourth 
gives  life.  The  youths  are  herdsmen  {Ardschi-Bordschi- 
Chdn)  or  tradesmen  {Senguehassen-Battissi,  tale  10, 
part  3). 

A  product  of  the  mingling  of  types  is  the  first  part  of 
Prince  Ahmed  and  the  Fay  Pari-Banou  in  the  Thousand 
and  One  Nights,  but  the  story  became  so  popular  in  Europe 
that  it  will  be  well  for  practical  classification  to  make  it 
a  type  by  itself,  even  though  it  deals  primarily  with  the 
Kesuscitation  themjO.  It  will  be  called  the  Gifts  type, 
because  the  lovers  perform  their  services  by  means  of 
magic  gifts. 

In  all  the  types,  the  lovers  fall  into  an  argument  for  the 
possession  of  the  maiden.     They  may  simply  wrangle 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEKS  277 

among  themselves  witliout  trying  to  get  a  disinterested 
person  to  decide  the  matter,  but  more  often  there  is  some- 
one to  whom  thej  appeal  for  a  judg-ment.  As  we  have 
seen,  this  person  is  frequently  the  father  of  the  maiden. 
In  these  disputes  by  the  lovers  lies  the  germ  of  such  an 
elaborate  court  scene  as  that  describecl  in  the  Paradiso  or 
the  Parlement  of  Foules.  We  are  soon  to  trace  its  growth. 
It  goes  without  saying  that  as  a  rule  each  one  of  the 
types  just  described  has  the  indecisive  ending  which  is 
characteristic  of  The  Contending  Lovers. 

II 

SUMMAEY  OF  TEE  CONTENDING  LOVERS 

The  evolution  of  The  Contending  Lovers  after  it  has 
reached  Europe,  its  spread,  and  the  relative  popularity 
gained  among  many  peoples  by  the  different  types  which 
have  been  distinguished  may  be  best  studied  after  a  syste- 
matic classification  and  summary  of  versions  has  been 
made.  I  give  in  the  following  pages  such  a  summary.  My 
purpose  being  to  C&nvey  in  as  short  space  as  possible  a 
fairly  comprehensive  knowledge  of  the  different  types  of 
The  Contending  Lovers,  I  indicate  in  all  cases  what  seem 
pertinent  features  of  the  stories  listed.  In  some  cases  I 
summarize  more  fully  than  in  others,  as  the  importance  of 
the  versions  or  their  relationship  to  other  versions  dictates, 
but  at  all  times  particular  attention  is  paid  to  the  dispute 
between  the  lovers  and  the  conclusion  of  the  story.  Dis- 
cussion of  the  different  versions,  however,  has  been  re- 
served. If  this  list  with  its  accompanying  notes  vexes  the 
reader  as  a  too  mechanical  dissection  of  tales  that  are 
usually  gracefully  told,  let  me  ask  him  to  use  it  only  for 
reference  and  skip  to  ensuing  discussion. 

Because  of  the  Chaucer  problems  which  lie  in  the  back- 
3 


278  WILLABD   EDWAED    FAENHAM 

ground,  tlie  summary  is  meant  primarily  to  give  in  tiie 
briefest  and  most  usable  form  possible  a  characterization 
of  European  versions  vi^liicli  are  thorouglily  representative 
of  botli  peoples  and  types,  but  some  modern  Oriental  ver- 
sions are  included,  as  are  also  a  few  Highly  interesting 
tales  from  Africa.^  The  Pcirlement  of  Foules  itself  has 
been  left  out  of  the  attempted  classification.  The  versions 
are  grouped  as  follows : 

The  Resuscitation  type. 
The  Gifts  type. 
The  Rescue  type. 

Versions  with  the  Incident  of  the  Ship. 

Versions  with  the  Incident  of  the  Tower. 

Miscellaneous  versions  of  the  Rescue  type. 
The  Creation  type. 
Anomalous  versions. 

Chronological  classification  for  any  mass  of  European 
folk-lore  is,  of  course,  next  to  impossible.  This  is  one  of 
the  reasons  why  the  method  of  presenting  material  has 
here  been  changed  from  that  used  with  Oriental  begin- 
nings, where  a  rough  chronological  arrangement  of  the 
tales  could  be  made. 

THE  RESUSCITATION  TYPE 

Oriental  Prototypes. — Vetdlapancliavinsati  2  ;  Sengue- 
hassen-Bobttissi,  tale  10,  part  3 ;  Booh  of  Sindibdd. 

African. — R.  E.  Dennett,  FolJc-Lore  of  the  Fjort,  London, 
1898,  no.  3,  pp.  33-4,  How  the  Wives  Restored  Their 
Husband  to  Life. 

*Lack  of  space  and  the  inaccessibility  of  rarer  versions  in  less- 
read  European  languages  forbid  completeness.  For  further  material 
see  the  indispensable  notes  to  Grimm  129  by  Bolte  and  Polivka, 
Anmerl'ungen,  Band  in  (1918),  pp.  45-58.  In  most  cases  the  char- 
acter of  inaccessible  versions  there  noted  is  suflBciently  indicated. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVERS  279 

Curious  case  where  sexes  are  reversed.  Three  wives  resuscitate 
dead  husband  and  dispute  about  merit.  Husband  favors  her  who 
has  knowledge  of  life-giving  herbs. 

Ceylonese. — H.  Parker,  Village  Folk-Tales  of  Ceylon, 

London,  1910,  no,  74,  i,  pp.  378  £F.,  The  Three  Suitors. 

A  goes  to  a  soothsayer,  B  watches  at  the  girl's  burying  place,  C 
says,  "  It  doesn't  matter  to  me,"  and  goes  away.  Eesuscitated 
maiden  chooses  C. 

Ceylonese. — H.  Parker,  work  cited,    no.  82,  ii,  pp.  36-9 

(Variant  a).  The  Nobleman  and  His  Five  Sons. 

Mutilated.  Only  three  of  the  sons,  to  whose  number  is  added 
the  father,  claim  the  girl.     No  decision. 

Ceylonese. — H.  Parker,  work  cited,     no.  82,  ii,  pp.  42- 
3    (Variant    c).    The    Attempt    of   Four   Brahmana 
Princes  to  Marry. 
Four  brothers  learn  respectively  the  sciences  of  looking  at  omens, 

of  going  in  the  sky,  of  abating  poison,  and  of  giving  life.     Quarrel. 

No  one  gets  princess. 

Chaldean. — F.  Macler,  Quatre  Contes  Chaldeans,  Revue 
des  Traditions  Popidaires,  xxiii   (1908),  no.   1,  pp. 
327  ff.,  Les  Trois  Freres. 
Brothers  go  out  into  the  world  to  learn  professions:    astronomy, 

medicine,  civil  engineering.     Resuscitate  maiden.     '•  Les  parents  et 

les  amis  vinrent  et  tinrent  conseil;  a  qui  la  donner."     Decision  in 

favor  of  A,  the  eldest. 

Gkeek. — Eev.    E.    M.    Geldart,    Folk   Lore    of   Modern 
Greece,  London,  1884,  pp.  106-25,  The  Golden  Casket. 
(Translated  from  the  Greek  texts  collected  by  Von 
Halin  and  published  by  J.   Pio,    Contes  Popidaires 
Grecs,  1879.) 
Told  to  make  a  princess  break  silence.    (Cf.  Senguehassen-Battissi 
10.     Three  lovers  not  brothers;  A  is  a  famous  astrologer,  B  an  emi- 
nent doctor,  C  a  swift  runner. 

Indian. — Cbarles  Swynnerton,  Indian  Nights  Entertain- 


280  WILLAED    EDWAED    FAENHAM 

ment,  1892,  i,  p.  228,  The  Story  of  All  the  Merchant 
and  the  Brahmin. 
Modern  Indian  folk  version  of  tlie  old  Vetdla  Resuscitation  story. 

Italian. — Giovanni  da  Prato,  II  Paradise  degli  Alherti, 
ed.  Alessandro  Wesselofskj,  Bologna,  1867,  Tale  of 
tlie  Founding  of  Prato,  ii,  pp.  98-171.  (Summarized 
in  Publications  of  the  Modern  Language  Association^ 
XXXII,  pp.  496  ff.) 

THE  GIFTS  TYPE 

Oeiental  Peototype.  —  Thousand  and  One  Nights, 
Prince  Ahmed  and  the  Fay  Pari-Banou. 

These  versions  usually  bear  close  resemblance  to  the 
Oriental  prototype,  and  show  strikingly  small  variation 
among  each  other.  Three  is  the  universal  number  of 
the  lovers. 

Afeican.  —  George  W.  Ellis,  Negro  Culture  in  West 
Africa,  'New  York,  1914,  no.  18,  pp.  200  ff..  Three 
Rival  Brothers. 

Magic  glass,  magic  medicine,  magic  hammock.  Dispute  taken  to 
a  judge,  who  is  unable  to  make  a  decision,  and  turns  the  matter  over 
to  the  people.    "  To  which  of  the  brothers  did  the  daughter  belong  ?  " 

Afeican. — ^Henri  A.  Junod,  Les  Chants  et  les  Contes  des 

BorBonga  de  la  Baie  de  Delagoa,  Lausanne,  1897,  no. 

27,  Les  trois  Vaisseaux. 

Three  sons  of  a  white  man  journey  through  the  world  and  buy 

respectively  a  basket,  a  mirror,  and  a  powder,  which  are  the  means 

of  bringing  their  loved  one  back  to  life  and  causing  a  hot  dispute  for 

her.     Ending  takes  a  nonsensical  turn  when  an  old  man  decrees  that 

the  girl  shall  be  given  to  the  first  lover  who  can  say  "  Mamma." 

Afeican.  —  C.  Velten,  Mdrchen  und  Erzdhlungen  der 
Suaheli,  1898,  p.  71.  (The  tale  is  here  printed  in  the 
dialect.  It  is  summarized  by  Cosquin,  Revue  des  Tra- 
ditions Po'pulaires,  xxxr  [1916],  p.  103.) 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVERS  281 

Marvellous  articles  are  a  mirror,  a  mat,  and  a  bottle  of  scent. 
After  the  three  brothers  have  resurrected  the  maid  they  ask  her  to 
choose  for  herself  among  them.  She  does  the  unexpected,  and  chooses 
the  father  of  the  brothers,  because,  she  says,  they  can  then  all  three 
call  her  "  Mamma." 

Balochi. — M.  Longworth  Dames,  Balochi  Tales,  Folk- 
Lore,  IV  (1893),  no.  12,  pp.  205  ff.,  The  Three  Won- 
derful Gifts. 
Three  youths  wish  to  marry  the  daughter  of  their  imcle,  who 
sends  them  on  the  quest  for  wonderful  gifts.    They  get  a  revivifying 
bead,  a  looking-glass,  and  a  flying  couch,  and  thereby  restore  the 
dead  loved  one  to  life.     Uncle  sends  lovers  to  king  for  judgment, 
which  is:   "According  to  the  law  I  give  her  to  him  who  first  saw 
her  while  the  women  were  washing  her,  as  he  saw  her  undressed, 
and  she  would  be  ashamed  in  his  presence." 

Bohemian. — Jolm  T.  ifTaake,  Slavonic  Fairy  Tales,  Lon- 
don, 18T4,  pp.  194  ff.,  The  Wise  Judgment. 

Sophisticated  version.  Gifts  are  a  carriage,  a  looking  glass,  and 
three  apples  with  the  usual  magic  qualities.  Father  imable  to  de- 
cide among  the  three  brothers  and  calls  in  the  wise  men  of  the 
kingdom.     Girl  finally  awarded  to  yoimgest  suitor. 

Geeek. — J.  G.  VON  TTattn,  Griechische  und  Alhanesische 
Mdrchen,  Leipzig,  1864,  no.  47,  i,  pp.  263  £F.,  Yon  den 
drei  um  die  Braut  streiteyiden  Brildern. 
Brothers  see,  reach,  and  resuscitate  dying  maiden  by  means  of 

telescope,  magic  "  apfelsine,"  and  flying  carpet.     Quarrel  hopelessly 

and  father  takes  girl  for  his  own  wife. 

Hungarian. — G.  Stier,  Ungansche  Sagen  und  Mdrchen, 
Berlin,  1850,  no.  9,  pp.  61  ff.,  Drei  Kosthare  Dinge. 
Very  close  to  the  Bohemian  version,  Naakg,  p.  194,  even  in  the 
matter  of  the  judgment. 

Icelandic.  —  Adeline  Rittersliaiis,  Die  Neuisldndischen 

VolJcsmdrchen,  Halle  a.  S.,  1902,  no.  43,  pp.  183  ff.. 

Die  drei  Freier  um  eine  Braut. 

Telescope,   mantle,    apple.     An    assembly   is   called   to   settle   the 

lovers'  dispute,   and  the  decision  is  that  the  problem  is  insoluble 

except  by  a  new  test. 


282  WILLAED    EDWAKD    FAKNHAM 

Icelandic.  —  Mrs.  A.  W.  Hall,  Icelandic  Fairy  Tales, 
London,  1897(  ?),  pp.  19  ff.,  The  King's  Three  Sons. 
Variant  of  the  preceding  version  with  the  judgment  scene  de- 
scribed in  greater  detail.  King  calls  a  great  "  Thing  "  or  national 
assembly  and  has  the  brothers  exhibit  their  gifts  before  it.  Set 
speeches  are  made  by  the  brothers,  who  harangue  their  audience 
with  some  spirit.     No  decision  reached. 

Icelandic.  —  Jon  Arnason,  tr.  Powell-Magniisson,  Ice- 
landic Legends,  1866,  pp.  348  ff.,  The  Story  of  the 
Three  Princes. 
Still  another  variant  close  to  the  preceding  two. 

Italian. — ^Glierardo  J^eriicci,  Sessanta  Novelle  Popolari 
Montalesi,  Firenze,  1880,  no.  40,  pp.  335  ff.,  I  tre 
Eegali. 
Father   of   princess   proposes   to   give  her   to  that   one   of   three 
brother  princes  who  will  acquire  the  most  wonderful  gift  for  her. 
A  gets  magic  flying  carpet,  B  a  telescope  with  a  range  of  one  hun- 
dred miles,   C  three  grape  stones  which  will  resuscitate   a  dying 
person.     By  means  of  these  princess  is  resuscitated.    No  decision. 

Italian. — ^^Cliristian  Sclineller,  Mdrchen  und  Sagen  aus 
Wcilschtirol,  Innsbruck,  1867,  no.  14,  Die  Drei  Lieh- 
haber  (Z  tre  Aynanti). 
Gifts  are  a  crystal  of  observation,  resuscitating  apple,  flying  chair. 

After  maiden  is  cured  of  illness  "  Welchen  von  den  dreien  hat  nun 

das  Madchen  wol  etwa  geheiratet  ? " 

Magtae. — Eev.  W.  Henry  Jones  and  Lewis  L.  Kropf, 

The  Folk-Tales  of  the  Magyars,  London,   1889,  pp. 

155  ff.,  The  Three  Valuahle  Things. 

Magic  properties  are  a  telescope,  a  cloak,  and  an  orange.     After 

the  maid  is  restored  to  life  there  is  among  the  three  brothers  "  a  good 

deal  of  litigation  and  quarrelling,"  and  "  all  the  learned  and  old 

people  of  the  realm  "  are  called  together  to  make  a  decision.     The 

girl  is  awarded  to  the  youngest  brother,  who  possessed  the  orange. 

Portuguese. — ^Consiglieri  Pedroso,  tr.  Miss  Ilenriqueta 
Monteiro,  Portuguese  Folk-Tales,  London,  1882,  no. 
23,  pp.  94  ff.,  The  Three  Princes  and  the  Maiden. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVERS  283 

Three  princes  acquire  looking-glass,  rug  of  transportation,  and  a 
candle  that  restores  the  dead  to  life.  Resuscitated  maiden  says, 
"  As  you  all  three  have  a  right  to  naarry  me,  and  as  I  cannot  have 
three  husbands  at  one  time,  I  shall  not  marry  any  of  you!  " 

Roumanian-<Gypsy. — F.  II.  Groome,  Gypsy  Folk-Tales, 
London,  1899,  no.  13,  pp.  53  ff..  The  Watchmaker. 

Young  watchmaker  wins  dumb  princess  by  making  her  break 
silence  over  the  tale  of  the  gifts.  Jlirror,  robe,  apple.  "  And  whom 
then  did  she  choose  ?  " 

Seebian.  —  Madam  Csedomille  Mijatovies,  ed.  Rev.  W. 

Denton,  Serbian  Folk-Lore,  London,  1874,  pp.  230  ff., 

The  Three  Suitors. 

Carpet,  telescope,  ointment.  Disputation  is  useless,  and  king, 
father  of  the  princess,  sends  the  three  suitors  away  without  a 
judgment. 

South  Slavic. — Friedrich  S.  Kranss,  Tausend  Sagen  und 
Maerchen  der  Sildslaven,  Wien,  1914,  no.  63,  i,  pp. 
196  ff.,  Drei  Liebhaber  beleben  ihre  verstorbene  Liebe 
wieder. 

Three  youths  (not  brothers)  learn  that  a  maiden  in  next  village 
is  dead  by  means  of  a  glass  which  one  of  them  possesses,  go  to  the 
scene  on  a  flying  "  fellchen,"  and  restore  her  to  life  with  "  ein 
fliischchen  des  Abuhajol-Wassers."  Dispute  as  to  possession  of  girl 
taken  before  Kadi,  who  gives  maiden  the  self-choice.  She  chooses 
"einen  von  ilmen";  which  one  the  tale  does  not  say. 

Spanish. — Fernan  Caballero,  tr.  J.  H.  Ingram,  Spanish 

Fairy  Tales,  Philadelphia,  1881,  pp.   22  ff.,  A   Girl 

Who  Wanted  Three  Husbands. 

Striking  self-choice.  Father  wants  daughter  to  take  one  of  three 
eligible  suitors  and  she  says,  "  I  will  accept  the  three."  The  father's 
remonstrances  are  useless  and  he  finally  decrees  the  test  by  gifts. 
Those  forthcoming  are  a  glass,  a  balsam,  and  a  boat,  which  aid  the 
suitors  to  resuscitate  the  girl  after  life  has  departed.  When  dis- 
pute begins,  the  irrepressible  daughter  arises  smiling  from  her  coflSn, 
and  turning  to  her  father,  says,  "  You  see,  father,  that  I  must  marry 
all  three  of  them." 


284  WILLARD    EDWAED    FARNHAM 

Turkish.  —  Ignacz  Kunos,  Forty-four  Turkish  Fairy 
Tales,  London,  1918  ( ?),  pp.  44  ff.,  The  Silent  Prin- 
cess. 

Corrupted,     Three   young   men    learn    arts   corresponding   to   the 
usual  gifts  in  this  type.     Princess  is  ill  and  resuscitated. 

THE  RESCUE  TYPE 

Orientax  Prototypes. — Vetdlapanchavinsati  5  ;  Sengue- 
hassen-Baitissij  tale  10,  part  1 ;  Tuti-Ndma  22 ;  Booh 
of  Sindibdd. 

rescue  versio2s"s  with  the  incideis't  of  the  ship 

Bretoist.  —  F.   M.   Luzel,   Contes  Populaires  de  Basse- 

Bretagne,  Paris,  1887,  no.  9,  iii,  pp.  312  ff.,  Les  Six 

Freres  Paresseux. 

A  delightfully   told   and   very   elaborate   tale.     The   poor   father 

here  has   six  sons  whom  he   sends   into  the  world  to  make  their 

fortunes.     A  becomes  a  climber,  B  a  mender,  C  an  archer,  D  a  violin 

player  and  reviver  of  the  dead,  E  a  shipbuilder,  F  a  diviner;  the 

skilled  six  are  enabled  to  rescue  the  usual  princess  held  captive  on 

an  island.     Father  holds  a  miniature  court  to  decide  the  dispute 

for  the  girl's  hand,  and  each  son  presents  his  case  in  turn.     The 

maiden  is  finally  allowed  to  choose  for  herself,  but  we  are  not  told 

whom  she  chooses. 

Breton. — Paul  Sebillot,  Contes  Populaires  de  la  Haute- 

Bretagne,  Paris,  1880,  no.  8,  pp.  53  ff.,  Les  Quatre 

Fits  du  Meunier. 

Details  again  much  like  those  in  Grimjoi  129^-51^2^  decide  which 

brother  shall  keep  the  princess,  the  four  g^  t^  r-  "  courte-paille." 

Th^e-  the  tailor  is  chosen ;  the  king  rewards  the  others. 

Ceylonese. — H.  Parker,  Village  Folk-Tales  of  Ceylon, 
London,  1910,  no.  82,  ii,  pp.  33  ff.,  The  Princes  who 
Learnt  the  Sciences. 
Four  skilled  princes.     Eemarkable  similarities  to  Grimm  129. 

Danish. — Svend  Grundtvig,  Danske  Folkeaeventyr,  Kj0- 
benhavn,  1881,  no.  17,  pp.  210  ff.,  Syvstjaemen. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEES  285 

Six  sons  are  sliipbuilder,  helmsman,  keen  hearer,  crack  shot, 
climber,  master-thief.  King  camiot  settle  contention  and  has  maiden 
and  lovers  placed  in  the  heavens  as  stars. 

German. — Jacob  and  William  Griiii,m,  Kinder-  und  Haus- 
mdrcTien,  no.  129,  Die  vler  hwistreichen  Briider. 
A  poor  man  sends  his  four  sons  away  from  home  to  learn  trades, 
and  they  become  thief,  astronomer,  huntsman,  and  tailor,  each  super- 
latively skilled  in  his  calling.  On  their  return  he  tests  them.  Later 
they  rescue  the  captured  princess  in  the  usual  way,  the  tailor  being 
forced  to  repair  the  broken  ship.  After  the  return  each  brother 
presents  his  claims 'to  the  princess  and  the  king  decides  that  as  each 
has  an  equal  right  he  will  reward  them  all  handsomely  instead  of 
settling  the  dispute. 

German.  —  Friedrich  Woeste,  Zeitschrift  fiir  Deutsche 
Mytliologie,  i,  p.  338. 
A  variant  of  Grimm  129  in  which  the  tailor  becomes  a  cooper, 
and  the  astronomer  an  "  allwisser." 

Italian.  —  Gian  Battista  Basile,  II  Pentamerone,  v,  7. 
(Tr.  Sir  Eichard  Burton,  London,  1893.) 
A  is  a  clever  rogue,  B  a  skilful  boat-builder,  C  an  unerring  cross- 
bow marksman,  D  a  physician,  and  E  a  student  of  the  language  of 
birds.  There  is  an  added  incident  in  which  the  ghul  who  guards 
the  princess  pursues  the  company  and  is  shot  by  C.  The  ghul  falls 
upon  the  boat  and  the  princess  would  have  been  killed  if  D  had  not 
revived  her.     King  awards  the  princess  to  the  father  of  the  suitors. 

Italian. — Domenico  Comparetti,  Novelline  Popolari  ltd- 
liane,  1875,  no.  19,  i,  pp.  80  ff.,  I  tre  ragazzi. 
Three  young  men  rescue  princess  kept  in  a  cavern  by  a  magician, 
sail  away  with  her,  and  are  pursued.  Hunter  shoots  magician,  who 
falls  on  the  boat.  Carpenter  mends  the  boat.  In  the  resulting 
quarrel  for  the  girl  the  father  declares  that  none  of  the  lovers  shall 
have  her  but  that  he  will  provide  other  wives  for  them. 

Italian.  —  Hieronymus  Morlinus,  no.  79,  De  fratrihus 
qui  per  orhem  pererrando  ditati  sunt.     See  Parthe- 
nopei,  Novellae,  Fabulae,  Comoedia,  Paris,  1855,  pp. 
155  ff. 
Tale  translated  closely  by  Straparola.    See  summary  below. 


286  WILLAED    EDWARD    FARNHAM 

Italian. — II  Novellino,  The  Story  of  the  King  of  Jeru- 
salem and  hk  Four  8o7is.  See  text  by  Giovanni  Pa- 
panti,  Catalogo  del  Novellieri  Italiani  in  Prosa,  1871, 
no.  23,  I,  pp.  44  ff. 

Version  incomplete  owing  to  lacimae  in  the  manuscript,  but  ex- 
tremely interesting  as  one  of  the  earliest  recorded  European  tales 
of  the  type. 

Italian.  —  Giovanni  Francesco  Straparola,  I  Piacevoli 

Noti,  night  vii,  fable  5.     (Tr.  W.  G.  Waters,  London, 

1894.) 

A  poor  man's  three  sons  go  out  into  the  world  and  learn  arts  or 
trades;  A  becomes  a  warrior  and  clever  scaler  of  fortress  walls,  B 
a  skilful  shipwright,  C  a  student  versed  in  the  language  of  birds. 
By  means  of  these  accomplishments  they  learn  of  a  princess  im- 
mured in  a  castle  on  an  island,  reach  her,  and  rescue  her.  But  since 
they  cannot  divide  her  into  three  parts,  they  wrangle  over  her  pos- 
session. "  Wherefore  we  shall  each  settle  the  cause  as  we  think 
right,  while  the  judge  keeps  us  waiting  for  his  decision."  As  in  all 
versions  with  this  incident,  the  maiden  is  reached  by  means  of 
a  ship. 

Italian. — Georg  Widter  und  Adam  Wolf,  V olksmdrchen 

aus  Venetien,  Jahrhuch  fur  Bomanische  und  Englische 

Literature  vii,  p.  30,  Die  vier  hunstreichen  Briider. 

Four  sons  who  Avish  to  marry  their  foster  sister  are  sent  out  into 
the  world  by  the  father  to  learn  arts.  They  become  carpenter, 
hunter,  thief,  magician,  and  when  the  girl  is  stolen  by  a  prince, 
they  find  and  rescue  her.  Carpenter  mends  the  ship  when  a  pur- 
suing dragon  has  fallen  upon  it  and  broken  it.  Father  awards  the 
maid  to  the  carpenter. 

Moravian. — A.  H.  Wratislaw,  8ixtij  Folh-Tales,  London, 

1889,  no.  9,  pp.  55  ff..  The  Four  Brothers. 

Cobbler,  thief,  astrologer,  huntsman.  Cobbler  mends  the  boat. 
After  a  contention  for  the  rescued  girl,  the  suitors  ask  her  father 
to  pass  judgment.  He  quibbles  by  saying  that  he  has  promised  to 
give  the  princess  to  the  one  who  should  find  her,  and  that  since  the 
astrologer  has  done  this,  he  shall  have  her. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEES  287 

Slavic. — Joseph  Wenzig,  Westslawischer  Mdrchenschatz, 
Leipzig,  1857,  pp.  140  ff.,  Die  vier  Brilder. 
Variant  of  the  version  above,  in  which  the  thief  becomes  a  "  ha- 
dersammler."    At  the  request  of  the  brothers  the  princess  is  allowed 
to  choose  for  herself,  but  we  are  not  told  which  she  chooses. 

RESCUE  VERSIONS   WITH  THE  INCIDENT  OF  THE  TOWER 

In  the  following  versions  the  rescue  is  accomplished  in 
much  more  elaborate  fashion  than  in  any  others  of  the 
type.  There  is  here  a  peculiar  incident  which  has  to  do 
with  the  hiding  of  the  princess  in  a  tower  or  refuge  which 
one  of  the  suitors  can  erect  at  a  moment's  notice.  The 
suitors  are  usually  seven. 

Albanian. — Auguste  Dozen,  Contes  Alhanais,  Paris, 
1881,  no.  4,  pp.  27  ff.,  Le  Pou. 
A  demon  wins  a  princess  in  a  most  curious  fashion  by  identifying 
the  hide  of  a  monstrous  louse,  which  is  himg  up  in  a  public  place. 
The  girl  is  rescued  from  her  demon  lover,  who  hides  her  imder- 
ground,  by  the  seven  skilled  lovers.  A  can  hear  keenly,  B  malce  the 
earth  open  at  command,  C  steal  anything,  D  throw  "  un  Soulier  "  to 
the  end  of  the  world,  E  build  a  tower,  F  shoot  unerringly,  G  catch 
safely  anything  falling  from  the  sky.  WTien  the  demon  flies  away 
with  the  princess  after  she  has  almost  been  brought  to  safety,  F 
shoots  him,  and  G  catches  the  falling  girl.  The  king  asks  the 
princess  to  choose  among  the  lovers  and  she  takes  the  one  who 
caught  her  when  she  fell. 

Albanian.  —  Gustav  Meyer,  Alhanische  Mllrclien,  1881, 
no.  8,  pp.  118  ff.,  Die  siehen  Brilder  mit  den  Wunder- 
gahen. 
Contains  the  incident  of  the  louse  substantially  as  in  preceding 
tale.     The  judgment  scene  is  noteworthy.    A  great  assembly  is  con- 
vened, and  the  princess  asks  of  her  father  the  right  to  choose  for 
herself.     She  chooses  the  brother  who  raised  the  palace. 

Greek.  —  Eev.   E.   M.   Geldart,   Folk  Lore   of  Modern 
Greece,  London,  1884,  pp.  106  ff.,  The  Golden  Casket. 
Problem  tale  told  to  make  a  dumb  princess  break  silence.     The 
lovers  are  seven  and  have  accomplishments  of  the  usual  sort. 


288  WILLAED    EDWAED    FAENIIAM 

Italian.  —  Laura    Gonzenbacli,    Sicilianische    Mdrchen, 
Leipzig,  1870,  no.  45,  i,  pp.  305  ff.,  Von  den  siehen 
Briidern,  die  Zauhergahen  hatten. 
The  daughter  of  a  king  is  stolen  by  an  ogre  and  seven  skilled 
young  men  undertake  her  rescue.     A  can  run  like  the  wind,  B  can 
hear   anything  anywhere,  C  can  with  his  fists  beat  in  seven  iron 
doors,  D  can  steal  anything,  E  can  build  an  iron  tower  in  a  mo- 
ment's time,  F  can  shoot  unerringly,  G  can  wake  the  dead  with  his 
guitar.     In  the  obvious  ways  the  youths  locate  the  girl,  steal  her 
from  the  ogre,  and  flee  with  her.     When  the  ogre  pursues,  E  builds 
his  tower,  F  shoots  the  monster,  but  also  hits  the  princess,  and  G  is 
forced  to  restore  her  to  life.     The  king  invites  a     discussion  as  to 
which  youth  deserves  the  princess,  and  she  is  finally  awarded  to  G. 

Italian.  —  Giuseppe   Pitre,   Novelle  Popolari  Toscani, 
Eirenze,  1885,  no.  10,  i,  pp.  65  ff.,  II  Negromante. 
Seven  suitors  have  slightly  different  accomplishments  from  those 
in  preceding  version.     King  quashes  the  ambitions  of  the  brothers 
to  marry  into  the  royal  family,  and  rewards  them  otherwise. 

Italian. — Giuseppe  Pitre,  work  cited,  i,  pp.  Yl  ff.,  Mente 
Infusa. 
Variant  of  the  above  tale. 

Italian.  —  Giuseppe   Pitre,   Fiahe   Novelle   e   Racconti 
Popolari  Siciliani,  Palermo,  1875,  i,  pp.  196  ff.,  II 
Mago  Tartagna. 
Seven  skilled  brothers  rescue  the  princess  in  the  usual  way,  and 
carry  their  dispute  for  her  possession  into  court.     It  is  there  de- 
cided that  the  brother  who  carried  her  in  his  arms  should  take  her 
to  wife. 

Italian. — Giuseppe  Pitre,  same  work,  i,  p.  197,  I  sette 

Fratelli. 

Summarized  incompletely  by  Pitrfe  as  a  variant  of  the  preceding 
tale.     No  dispute  mentioned. 

Lesbian.  —  Leon  Pineau,  Coxites  Populaires  Grecs  de 
L'isle  de  Lesbos,  Revue  des  Traditions  Populaires,  xii 
(1897),  pp.  201  ff.,  L'epouse  du  Liable. 

Another  version  with  the  incident  of  the  louse.     Lovers  are  only 
three.     After  deliberation  by  the  king  the  princess  is  not  awarded. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEKS  289 

Serbian.  —  V.  Jagic,  Aiis  dem  Sudslavischen  Mdrclien- 
schatZj  Archiv  fur  Slavische  Philologie,  v  (1881),  no. 
4G,  pp.  36  ff.,  Ahermals  die  Plejaden. 
Lovers  are  again  six,  and  again  the  principals  in  the  dispute  are 

transformed    into    stars.     "  Das    sind    die    sieben    Sterne    die    man 

Plejaden  nennt." 

Slavic. — Friedrich  S.  Krauss,  Sagen  und  Mdrchen  der 

Sudslaven,  Leipzig,  1883,  no.  32,  i,  pp.  120  ff.,  Das 

Siehengestirn. 

Lovers  are  five,  but  the  king's  "  Hofmann  "  who  finds  these  skilled 

brothers  also  lays  claim  to  the  princess.    The  mother  of  the  five 

brothers  is  unable  to  pass  judgment,  and  the  suitors  together  with 

the  princess  are  transformed  into  stars  in  the  firmament. 

MISCEtiLANEOUS   VERSIONS    OF   THE   RESCUE    TYPE 

African. — M.  D.  Charnaj,  Revue  des  Cours  litteraires  de 
la  France,  1865,  p.  210,  Souvenirs  de  Madagascar. 
(Quoted  in  full  by  Wesselofsky,  II  Paradiso  degli 
Alherti,  i,  ii,  p.  287.) 
Physician,  far-seer,  and  strong  man,  rescue  and  resuscitate  prin- 
cess.   "  A  qui  f aut-il  accorder  la  recompense  promise  ?    La  question 
n'est  pas  encore  rfeolue." 

African. — ^Reinsch,  Die  Saho-Sprache,  Wien,  1889,  no. 

3,  pp.  50  ff.,  ScJiiedsgerichtliclie  ZuerTcennung  eines 

Mcidchens  an  einen  von  vier  Freiern. 

Four  skilled  young  men  rescue  and  resuscitate  a  maiden  who  has 

been  devoured  by  a  hippopotamus.     A  judge  gives  the  loved  one  to 

the  suitor  who  had  sounded  a  trumpet  and  attracted  the  beast. 

Cambodian.  —  E.  Aymonier,  Textes  Kmers,  premiere 
serie,  Saigon,  1878,  p.  44. 
Four  men  learn  from  a  sage  brahman  respectively  astrology,  the 
science  of  arms,  the  art  of  plunging  and  travelling  in  water,  the 
art  of  resuscitating  the  dead.  When  an  eagle  flies  away  with  a 
princess  they  are  thus  enabled  to  learn  of  the  matter,  to  shoot  the 
bird,  and  after  the  girl  has  fallen  into  the  sea  to  rescue  and  resus- 
citate her.  The  king  judges  that  the  princess  belongs  to  him  who 
resuscitated  her. 


290  WILLARD    EDWARD    FARNIIAM 

German. — ^A.  M.  Tendlau,  Fellmeiers  Ahende,  Mdrchen 
und  GeschicJiien  aus  grauer  Vorzeit,  Frankfurt  am 
Main,  1856,  ii,  pp.  16  ff.,  Die  siehen  Kiinste. 
Seven  brothers  named  after  the  days  of  the  week  learn  highly 

specialized  arts,  and  rescue  a  princess  from  a  knight.     The  suitors 

argue  concerning  their  rights  to  the  loved  one,  and  the  youngest 

finally  prevails. 

German-Jewish.  —  Reinhold  Koliler,  Jahrhuch  fur  ro- 
vianische  und   englisclie  Literatur,  vii    (1866),   pp. 
33  ff. 
A  close  variant  of  the  tale  immediately  preceding. 

Greek. — ^R.  M.  Dawkins,  Modern  Greek  in  Asia  Minor, 
Cambridge,  1916,  p.  573  ff..  How  the  Companions 
Rescued  the  Prvncess. 

Corrupted  version.  Seven  brothers  include  a  listener,  a  catcher, 
a  crack  shot,  and  a  lifter.  The  father  of  the  maid  asks  her  to 
choose  and  she  takes  the  youngest  suitor. 

Tirolese. — ^^Christian  Schneller,  Mdrchen  und  8agen  aus 

Walschtirol,  Innsbruck,  1867,  no.  31,  pp.  86  if..  Die 

Frau  des  TeufeJs. 

Contains  the  incident  of  the  louse.     The  lovers  are  a  far-seer,  a 

sharp-hearer,  and  a  strong  man.     There  is  no  dispute  over  the  maid. 

Turkish. — J.  A.  Decourdemancbe,  Revue  des  Traditions 
Popidaires,  xiv  (1899),  pp.  411  ff.,  La  fille  du  Roi  de 
Cachemire,  L'afrite  et  les  Quatre  Freres.  (From  a 
Turkisb  redaction  of  the  Seven  Wise  Masters  of  the 
sixteenth  century.) 
A  clever  tracker,  a  man  of  war,  a  man  wise  in  writings,  and  a 

physician   rescue  a  princess,  who  is  not   awarded  by  the  king  to 

any  of  them. 

Slavic. — Friedricb  S.  Krauss,  Sag  en  und  Marchen  der 
Siidslaven,  Leipzig,  1883,  no.  33,  pp.  124  ff..  Die 
GlucJce. 

Serpent  carries  off  the  maiden.  Five  brothers,  Master-shot,  INIas- 
ter-eye,  Master-ear,  Master-thief,  and  Master-flight,  rescue  her.    The 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEKS  291 

mother  of  the  brothers  cannot  decide  the  dispute  for  the  girl,  and 
she  with  her  lovers  is  enveloped  in  a  cloud  and  all  become  stars. 
There  are  here  obvious  resemblances  to  versions  with  the  incident 
of  the  tower. 

THE  CEEATION  TYPE 

Oriental  Peototypes.  —  Ardschi-Bordschi-Chdn;  Sen- 
guehassen-Battissij  tale  10,  part  1 ;  Tuti-Ndma  5. 

The  versions  of  this  type  all  resemible  each  other  so 
closely  that  little  characterization  is  needed. 

Algerian.  —  Belkassem,  ben   Sedira,    Cours  de  Langue 
Kahyle,  Alger,  1887,  pp.  ccxxv  ff.,  La  fille  du  roi. 
Youth  wins  princess  by  telling  the  tale  of  the  carpenter,  the  silk- 
merchant,  and  the  t'aleb,  and  making  her  speak. 

Arabian. — Eene  Basset,  Revue  des  Traditions  Populaires, 
xv^  p.  114,  Le  menuisier,  le  commerqant,  et  le  t'aleh. 

Judge  favors  t'aleb,  who  has  given  life. 

Arabian.  —  Albert    Socin,    Diwan    aus    C entralarahien. 

Leipzig,  1900,   {Ahhandlungen  der  philologisch-liisto- 

rischen   Classe   der  Konigl.    Sachs.    Gesellschaft  der 

Wissenschaften)  Teil  ii^  no.  107,  p.  126. 

Creators  are  here  four,  a  goldsmith  being  introduced  to  ornament 

the  woman.     Judge  gives  woman  to  priest. 

Balochi.  —  M.  Longworth  Dames,  Baloclii  Tales,  Folk- 
Lore,  III  (1892),  pp.  524  ff.,  no.  6,  The  Four  Men 
Who  Made  the  Figure  of  a  Woman. 
King  awards  woman  to  tailor,  for,  he  says,  "  it  is  the  bridegroom 

who  gives  clothes  to  the  bride." 

Bohemian.  —  Th.  Benfey,  Pantschatantra,  1859,  i,  pp. 
491  ff.      (Benfey  translates  from  a  collection  by  B. 
ISTemcova,  1855.) 
Has  the  usual  three  lovers.    Told  to  make  a  princess  break  silence. 

Cambodian. — Adhemard  Leclere,  Contes  Laotiens  et  Corv- 
tes  CamhodgienSj  Paris,  1903,  pp.  161  £F.,  La  Statue 
vivifiee. 


292  WILLARD    EDWARD    FAENHAM 

Carpenter,  sculptor,  magician,  resuscitator.     Told  to  make  a  prin- 
cess speak. 

CuALDEAK". — r.  Macler,  Revue  des  Traditions  Populaires, 
XXIII  (1908),  pp.  333  ff.,  no.  2,  Les  Trois  Amis. 

Judge  declares  in  favor  of  the  priest,  but  makes  him   pay  the 
other  two  companions  for  their  work. 

Georgian. — Marjory  Wardrop,  Georgian  Folk-Tales^  Lon- 
don, 1894,  pp.  105  ff.,  The  King  and  the  Apple. 

Joiner,  tailor,  and  priest.    Corrupted  version  in  which  the  figure 
created  is  a  man.    Dispute  as  to  merit. 

Greek. — R.  M.  Dawkins,  Modern  Greek  in  Asia  Minor, 
Cambridge,  1916,  p.  465  ff.,  The  Carpenter,  the  Gold- 
smith, the  Tailor,  and  the  Priest. 

A  dervish  and  other  judges  are  not  able  to  decide  the  contention 
and  the  girl  goes  back  into  the  tree  from  which  she  was  made. 

Greek.  —  E.  M.  Geldart,  Folk-Lore  of  Modern  Greece, 
London,  1884,  pp.  106  ff.,  The  Golden  Casket. 
Another  provocative  problem  tale  told  to  make  a  princess  break 
silence.  A  monk,  a  tailor,  and  a  carpenter  journey  to  find  employ- 
ment. At  night  while  they  are  keeping  watch  for  robbers  each  in 
his  turn  contributes  of  his  skill  or  materials  toward  the  creation 
of  a  woman,  the  carpenter  carving  the  figure,  the  tailor  clothing  it, 
and  the  monk  giving  it  life.     They  argue  for  her  possession. 

Greek. — ^W.  R.  Paton,  Folk-Tales  from  the  Aegean,  Folk- 
Lore,  xn  (1901),  pp.  317  ff.,  TJlum-Sefer. 
Priest,  carpenter,  and  tailor.    No  decision  of  the  dispute. 

Indiajst. — ^Ferdinand  Hahn,  Blicke  in  die  Geisteswelt  der 
Heidnischen  Kols,  1906,  no.  13,  pp.  24  ff.,   ^Yessen 
Frau  ist  sie  ? 
Claimants  are  four.    Judge  favors  him  who  bestowed  life. 

Turkish.  —  H.    Carnoj,  La  Tradition,   v    (1891),   pp. 
326  ff.,  Le  Menuisier,  le  Tailleur,  et  le  Sophta. 
Also  told  to  make  an  obstinate  princess  speak. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVERS  293 

Turkish.  —  Ignacz    Ki'mos,    Forty-four    Turkish   Fairy 
Tales,  London,  1918 ( ?),  p.  48,  The  Silent  Princess. 
Carpenter,  softa,  and  tailor. 

ANOMALOUS  VERSIONS 

African. — E.  E.  Dennet,  FoJh-Lore  of  the  Fjort,  London, 
1898,  no.   16,  pp.  74  ff.,  How  the  Spider  ^Yon  and 
Lost  Nzamhis  Daughter. 
An  unusual  tale  in  which  naturally  skilled  creatures  perform  a 
difficult  task  and  dispute  for  a  girl  as  the  prize.     The  mother  can- 
not decide  the  contention  and  gives  each  the  "  market  value "  of 
the  daughter. 

African.  —  George  W.   Ellis,   Negro   Culture  in   West 

Africa,  'New  York,  1914,  no.  27,  pp.  211  £f.,  Three 

Royal  Lovers. 

Three  lovers  visit  a  princess.     For  A  she  prepares  a  bath,  for  B 

she  serves  a  dinner,  and  for  C  she  does  nothing  but  take  a  walk 

with  him.     The  youths  are  unable  to  agree  which  has  won  moat 

favor  from  the  innamorata,  and  take  the  matter  before  a  judge,  who 

is  also  nonplussed.     The  maid  is  still  unmarried. 

EsTiioNiAN. — Friedricli  Kreutzwald,  tr.  F.  Lowe,  Ehst- 

nische  Mdrchen,  Halle,  1869,  no.  3,  pp.  32  ff.,  Schnell- 

fuss,  Flinhhand,  und  Scharfauge. 

Tasks  and  tests  of  skill  are  perfoiTaed  for  the  princess's  hand. 

The  brothers  cannot  decide  among  themselves  which  has  the  greatest 

merit,  and  settle  the  matter  by  casting  lots.     Scharfauge  wins. 

Italian. — Novella  del  Fortunato  nuovamente  stampata, 
Livorno,  1869.  (Carefully  summarized  by  H.  Kohler, 
Kleinere  Schriften,  ii,  pp.  590  if.) 

Three  companions  win  a  princess  who  sets  her  lovers  the  task  of 
running  a  race  against  her.  Coricorante,  the  swift  runner,  under- 
takes the  task,  and  when  Vedividante  of  keen  sight  sees  him  lag 
behind,  Tiritirante,  the  archer,  is  induced  to  spur  him  on  with  a 
harmless  arrow.  The  king  calls  a  council  to  decide  the  dispute. 
"  La  coppia  della  sententia  6  nelle  mani  del  Fortunato  a  beneficio  di 
quelli  che  li  piacera  vederla." 

4 


294  WILLAED    EDWARD    FAENHAM 

]jOkeainese. — E.  Cosquin,  Conies  populaires  de  Lorraine, 
Paris,  1886,  no.  59,  pp.  184  ff.,  Les  trois  Charpentiers. 
Three  brothers,  all  carpenters,  receive  magic  things  from  an  old 
man:  a  belt  to  produce  precious  stones,  a  bell  which  when  rung 
resuscitates  the  dead,  a  sabre  which  makes  its  possessor  a  con- 
queror. In  obvious  ways  the  youths  help  a  king  to  win  his  battles, 
and  the  princess  marries  the  possessor  of  the  bell. 

Macedoniajst. — G.  F.  Abbot,  Macedonian  FolHore,  Cam- 
bridge, 1903,  p.  264,  The  Princess  and  the  Trwo 
Dragons. 

Curious  because  the  lovers  are  only  two.  They  perform  tasks  for 
the  princess's  hand,  and  finally  kill  each  other,  when  their  hopeless 
equality  is  apparent. 

Ill 
ANALYSIS  OF  THE  CONTENDING  LOVERS 

The  Contending  Lovers  has  undergone  mucb  transfor- 
mation, and  some  of  its  types  bave  been  raised  up  in  popu- 
larity, some  cast  down,  as  it  bas  been  adopted  by  European 
tale-tellers.  But  tbe  fact  tbat  it  bas  made  a  definite  appeal 
to  European  peoples,  and  must  bave  been  widely  known  at 
a  reasonably  early  date,  is  attested  by  tbe  mere  number  of 
occurrences  wbicb  appear  in  tbe  preceding  summary. 

Tbe  Rescue  type  of  our  tale  bas  outdistanced  all  otbers. 
Altbougb  tbe  Gifts  type  bas  attained  a  surprisingly  wide 
spread,  few  cbanges  bave  been  made  in  tbe  story  by  tbe 
succession  of  its  European  tellers.  It  remains  so  close  to 
tbe  form  in  tbe  Thousayid  and  Qyie  Nights  tbat  some  sus- 
picion of  recent  appropriation  by  tbe  folk  from  Galland's 
translation  bas  been  cast  on  at  least  one  version.^    But  tbe 

^  Clouston,  Appendix,  Burton's  8uppleme7ital  Nights,  xa,  p.  608 : 
"  Almost  suspiciously  like  the  story  in  Galland  in  many  of  the 
details  is  an  Icelandic  version  in  Powell  and  MagnGsson's  collection, 
yet  I  cannot  conceive  how  the  peasantry  of  that  country  could  have 
got  it  out  of  '  Les  Mille  et  Une  Nuits.'  "  See  this  tale  in  the  sum- 
mary above. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVERS  295 

liescue  type  lias  taken  new  life  from  its  contact  with 
Europe,  and  has  split  up  into  new  and  interesting  forms, 
evidently  absorbing  some  material  from  the  general  stock 
of  folk-lore  around  it.  The  result  has  been  the  evolution 
of  two  sub-tjpes,  which  I  have  seen  fit  to  classify  for  the 
sake  of  convenience  according  to  the  distinct  incidents  of 
the  ship  and  of  the  magic  tower.  Besides  those  found  in 
these  sub-types,  there  are  other  changes  rung  on  the 
i\escue  theme. 

Strangely,  the  pure  Resuscitation  type  has  fallen  to  such 
a  minor  place  that  its  characteristics  appear  very  seldom 
in  Europe,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  the  related  Gifts 
type,  in  which  a  resuscitation  occurs,  has  become  so  pop- 
ular. The  Paradiso  tale  obviously  uses  the  Resuscitation 
theme,  but  in  other  European  tales  only  a  few  evidences 
of  mixture  from  the  Resuscitation  type  are  found.^ 

Others  of  the  Oriental  types  occur  extremely  seldom  in 
Europe.  The  story  of  the  wooden  woman,  or  the  Creation 
type,  has  been  discovered  in  Bohemia,  but  is  most  often 
found  in  the  Orient.  The  story  of  the  exchanged  heads  is 
little  known  to  the  folk  in  Europe  except  by  recent  literary 
circulation. 

Lastly,  The  Co7itending  Lovers  has  taken  something 
from  tales  where  a  princess  is  won  by  the  performance  of 
hard  tasks  or  feats,  often  set  by  her  father  the  king,  and 
has  evolved  a  few  versions  in  which  no  real  service  is  ren- 
dered to  benefit  the  maiden. 

^  It  will  be  rememLered  that  even  in  the  Orient  a  mixture  of 
Rescue  and  Resuscitation  themes  occurred  in  the  Persian  Booh  of 
Sindibdd,  where  there  are  both  a  warrior  to  rescue  the  maiden  and 
a  physician  of  wondrous  power  to  resuscitate  her  when  she  is  dan- 
gerously ill.  As  a  European  example  see  Luzel  9,  where  a  violin 
player  brings  the  princess  back  to  life  after  she  has  been  drowned 
in  the  course  of  the  rescue. 


296  willaed  edward  farnham 

Transmission  to  Europe 

Some  light  would  no  doubt  be  thrown  on  certain  varia- 
tions of  The  Contending  Lovers  found  in  Europe  bj  a 
definite  knowledge  of  the  route  which  our  tale  followed  in 
its  migration  from  the  Orient.  However,  we  can  only  de- 
pend on  what  has  been  learned  regarding  the  transmission 
of  folk-lore  in  general,  and  upon  a  few  more  specific  the- 
ories regarding  particular  tales. 

General  knowledge  and  opinion  would  point  to  the  en- 
trance of  our  tale  into  Europe  mainly  through  lands  about 
the  Mediterranean,  and  perhaps  partly  through  Russia  by 
way  of  some  Mongolian  contact.  Benfey  thinks  certain 
European  versions  of  the  Rescue  type,  particularly  those 
nearest  to  Grimm  129,  are  most  closely  related  in  form  to 
the  Tuti-Ndma.^  He  points  out  the  relationship  between 
a  tale  in  a  Turkish  version  of  the  Tuti-Ndma  and  the 
Rescue  tale  in  Morlinus,  which  he  mistakenly  thinks  to  be 
the  oldest  European  occurrence.'^  Since  the  time  of  Ben- 
fey, however,  two  older  Italian  tales  than  that  in  Morlinus 
have  come  to  our  knowledge.  Italy's  seeming  priority  in 
the  appropriation  of  our  tale  is  streng-thened  by  these  two 
tales  from  II  Paradiso  and  II  Novellino;  ^  and  other  ex- 
ceedingly numerous  Italian  versions,  medieval,  renais- 
sance, and  modern,  may  be  considered  good  evidence  of 
sustained  popularity.  There  can  be  little  doubt  that 
through  Italy  many  versions  got  into  Europe,  and  this  is 
an  important  fact  when  we  come  to  connect  our  tale  with 
Chaucer. 

^ "  Alle  uns  bekannten  Formen  desselben  zeigen  sich  mit  der  zu- 
letzt  gegebenen  des  Papagaienbuclies  innigst  verwandt,"  he  declares 
(Klcinere  Schriften,  n,  iii,  p.  110). 

*Ibid.,  p.   112. 

« See  pp.  280  and  286  above. 


the  contending  lovers  29y 

The  Lovers 

After  The  Contending  Lovers  has  passed  into  Europe, 
it  soon  falls  under  a  series  of  influences  which  change  it 
in  more  or  less  orderly  fashion.  How  much  of  this  change 
takes  place  in  Europe,  and  not  in  the  Orient,  it  is  some- 
times hard  to  tell.  On©  patent  fact  is  the  trend  among 
European  tellers  to  change  the  number  and  character  of 
the  lovers.  Partly  because  the  Rescue  type  of  the  tale 
gains  greatest  popularity,  strong  emphasis  comes  to  be  laid 
on  the  skill  and  the  professions  or  trades  of  the  lovers.  In 
the  Orient  this  type  already  has  skilled  suitors,  and  in 
Europe  the  professions  or  accomplishments  soon  grow  to 
be  more  important  than  any  rank  or  nobility  possessed  by 
the  young  men.  The  maiden  remains  high-born,  usually 
a  princess,  but  her  lovers  become  men  of  the  people  who 
set  out  to  win  her  hand  and  half  her  father's  kingdom  in 
the  most  approved  fairy-tale  fashion. 

From  three  suitors,  usually  a  bold  fighter,  a  mail  of 
knowledge,  and  a  man  who  possesses  some  means  of  fast 
travel,  the  number  grows  in  the  Rescue  type  to  as  many 
as  seven  under  some  conditions.  Consequently  many  ac- 
complishments are  added  which  are  not  found  in  the  Ori- 
ental prototypes.  In  the  stories  of  the  Rescue  type  where 
the  suitors  reach  their  princess  by  means  of  a  ship,  the 
carpenter  who  can  construct  a  ship  on  a  moment's  notice, 
or  the  shipwright,  corresponds  to  the  man  with  the  magic 
chariot  in  certain  Oriental  versions.  The  marksman,  or 
hunter,  or  scaler  of  fortress  walls,  corresponds  to  the  war- 
rior. The  astrologer,  deviner,  or  possessor  of  keen  sight 
or  hearing,  is  the  man  of  knowledge.  Besides  these,  in  the 
stories  of  more  than  three  lovers,  we  are  apt  to  find  such 
skilled  men  as  a  tailor,  who  can  mend  the  ship  when  the 
pursuing  demon  falls  upon  it  and  breaks  it,  perhaps  a 


298  WILLAED    EDWAED    FAENHAM 

skilled  sailor  or  helmsman  to  steer  the  ship,  and  a  notable 
man  of  skill  in  the  shape  of  a  master-rogue  or  clever  thief, 
"who  does  the  actual  taking  of  the  princess  from  the  demon 
or  dragon. 

In  that  curious  variation  of  the  Rescue  type  distin- 
guished by  the  raising  of  a  tower  or  palace  in  which  to 
hide  the  princess  from  a  pursuing  demon,  the  lovers  are 
usually  seven.  Their  accomplishments  tend  to  become  so 
unnatural  and  so  highly  specialized  that  they  appear  to  be 
constructed  merely  for  purposes  of  fiction.  There  are 
suitors  who  can  beat  in  seven  iron  doors  with  their  fists, 
v.'ho  can  make  the  gi'ound  open  at  command,  who  can  catch 
anything  falling  from  the  sky,  or  who  can  lift  and  carry 
any  weight;  and  there  is  the  ubiquitous  suitor  who,  by 
waving  a  magic  wand,  stamping  his  foot,  or  utilizing 
magic  skill  in  masonry,  can  raise  a  tower  or  palace  in  the 
wink  of  an  eye.  The  uses  to  which  these  suitors  are  put 
are  familiar  from  the  tales  already  summarized. 

It  is  worthy  of  note  that  the  Rescue  type  with  the  inci- 
dent of  the  tower  seems  to  be  confined  to  three  contiguous 
regions  of  Europe,  namely,  Italy,  the  Balkans,  and  Greece, 
as  may  be  seen  from  the  bibliography. 

But  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  the  suitors  are  debased  in 
rank  for  the  Rescue  type,  they  remain  noble  in  manj'-  other 
versions.  In  the  Gifts  tj^e,  they  are  still  almost  always 
sons  of  a  king. 

A  very  marked  change  is  effected  in  many  European 
versions  of  The  Contending  Lovers  when  the  suitors  are 
made  brothers.  In  by  far  the  majority  of  occurrences  we 
find  this  new  feature.  It  is  not  at  all  natural  to  the  ear- 
liest Oriental  versions,  although  the  change  does  appear  at 
a  late  date.  The  suitors  are  brothers  in  the  Gifts  tale  from 
the  Thousand  and  One  Nights. 

Both  the  introduction  of  new  and  more  definitely  em- 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEKS  299 

phasized  arts  or  professions  and  tlie  introduction  of  tlie 
fraternal  relationship  are  bound  up  witli  the  almost  cer- 
tain influence  of  other  groups  of  stories.  It  is  impossible 
to  saj  just  when  this  influence  began  to  take  effect,  but 
we  have  seen  a  few  of  its  results  in  the  Orient.  One  of 
these  outside  tales  is  The  Skilful  Com/panions. 

There  is  conclusive  evidence  that  The  STcilful  Com- 
panions is  in  origin  quite  distinct  from  The  Contending 
Lovers.  Originally  The  Contending  Lovers  is  itself  sim- 
ple, and  the  lovers  are  by  no  means  necessarily  skilled. 
They  may  base  their  contentions  on  rank  or  on  fortuitous 
service,  as  in  the  Caste  type  or  the  Resuscitation  type. 
On  the  other  hand,  The  Skilful  C ompanions  appears  to 
have  had  at  one  time  nothing  to  do  with  a  contest  of  skill 
for  any  maiden;  even  when  it  appears  in  combination  it 
frequently  does  not  involve  this  incident. 

In  simple  versions  of  The  Skilful  Companions  there  are 
usually  three  or  more  expert  young  men  who  go  out  into 
the  world  to  seek  their  fortune.  Their  services  are  not  to 
win  a  maiden  for  themselves.  Even  when  in  the  more 
elaborate  tales  they  assist  a  hero  to  win  a  princess,  they 
only  play  a  role  which  is  frequently  given  to  helpful  ani- 
mals. Moreover,  there  is  usually  no  dispute  at  the  end  as 
to  which  one  of  the  companions  deserves  the  highest  re- 
ward. In  a  tale  from  the  Panchatanira,^  three  young 
men,  the  son  of  a  merchant,  the  son  of  a  learned  man,  and 
the  son  of  a  king,  go  out  into  the  world  to  gain  fame  and 
fortune,  and  finally  the  king's  son  gains  a  kingdom."^ 
Nutt  points  out  the  frequent  appearance  of  skilful  com- 

"Ed.  Benfey,  n,  pp.  150  ff.,  Der  Muge  Feind. 

^See  also  a  later  Arabic  version  in  the  Kalila  u  Dimna  summar- 
ized and  commented  upon  by  Wesselofsky,  Paradiso,  i,  ii,  pp.  246  ff. 
For  other  references  see  Benfey,  work  cited,  i,  pp.  287  flf;  also  Chau- 
vin,  Bibliogra-pMe  des  Ouvrages  Arabes,  vn,  pp.  124-5. 


300  WILLAED    EDWAED    FAENHAM 

panions  not  only  in  Celtic  folk-tales,  but  in  Celtic  heroic 
saga.^  He  finds  an  old  instance  in  the  Imran  Curaig  ua 
Corra,  of  which  there  was  probably  an  Irish  version  in  the 
eleventh  century.^  In  this  the  travellers  take  with  them 
a  shipbuilder  and  other  skilful  companions. 

An  interesting  tale  from  Madagascar  may  help  to  for- 
tify the  supposition  that  originally  The  Skilful  Com- 
panions existed  alone  and  unconnected  with  any  tale  of 
lovers  or  of  rescue.  It  should  be  compared  with  an  inci- 
dent in  Grimm  129,  where  the  four  contending  lovers  are 
brothers,  and  where  before  they  leave  to  rescue  the  princess 
their  skill  is  tested  by  their  father.  The  incident  has  to 
do  with  some  eggs  in  a  chaffinch's  nest,  which  the  far-seer 
counts,  and  the  thief  steals  without  the  knowledge  of  the 
bird.  The  huntsman  breaks  all  five  with  one  shot,  and  the 
tailor  mends  them  so  that  the  bird  is  able  to  hatch  them. 
After  this  the  young  men  rescue  the  princess.  Substan- 
tially the  same  test  is  applied  to  the  lovers  in  a  Rescue 
story  from  Ceylon,  which  would  make  it  seem  that  the 
episode  is  not  a  European  interpolation,  since  the  source 
of  the  Ceylonese  tale  must  almost  certainly  be  Oriental. 
In  the  Madagascar  tale  ^°  the  test  by  means  of  the  bird's 
eggs  forms  the  whole  story,  and  is  not  used  as  a  mere 
preface  to  the  larger  test  of  skill  involved  in  rescuing  a 
princess.  Three  men  meet,  and  each  states  that  he  is  going 
to  learn  a  trade.  Later  they  meet  again  after  they  have 
become  skilled.  To  proceed  in  the  words  of  the  story: 
"  lis  virent  un  ladroinga  qui  avait  pondu  des  oeufs.  '  Tire 
sur  les  oeufs  du  ladroinga,'  dirent-ils  au  tireur.  II  casa 
un  seul  des  oeufs.     '  Ya  derober  les  oeufs  du  ladroinga, 

*  Notes  to  Mac  Iiines,  Folk  and  Hero  Tales,  pp.  445  S. 
"Ibid.,  p.  448. 

"Charles  Renel,  Conies  de  Madagascar,  1910,  no.  91,  n,  pp.  118 ff., 
Les  trois  Hommes. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEKS  301 

sans  qu'il  te  voie/  dircnt-ils  au  voleur.  II  j  alia,  mais  les 
cassa  en  les  rapportant.  ''  Repare  ces  oeufs  casses/  dirent- 
ils  a  rouvrier  en  bois.  II  repara  les  oeufs.  Apres  avoir 
ainsi  montre  ce  qii'ils  savaient  faire,  cliacun  s'en  retourna 
chez  lui.     Quel  est  le  plus  liabile  de  ces  trois  hommes  ?  " 

Is  this  the  original  simple  tale  which  has  been  combined 
with  The  Contending  Lovers  as  an  incident  ?  It  is,  of 
course,  impossible  to  say  that  the  teller  might  not  have 
taken  the  incident  from  some  more  complicated  tale  and 
made  it  self-sufficient.  But  I  confess  I  am  inclined  to 
think  this  probably  a  descendant  of  an  original  simple  tale. 
It  no  doubt  reached  Madagascar  from  the  Orient,  perhaps 
through  the  Arabs. ^^  This  belief  is  strengthened  by  the 
other  evidence  which  tends  to  show  that  The  Skilful  Com- 
panions is  a  separate  tale  unto  itself. 

The  simple  story  of  skilful  companions  who  go  out  into 
the  world  to  seek  their  fortunes  becomes  combined  fre- 
quently with  a  tale  in  which  a  hero  has  a  feat  to  perform, 
and  often  this  feat  is  the  rescue  of  a  princess.  The  com- 
panions are  his  helpers.  In  a  tale  from  the  Highlands  of 
Scotland,^^  three  prodigiously  accomplished  men  aid  a 
hero  to  rescue  not  one^  but  three^  princesses  from  three 
giants  by  finding  the  maidens  for  him,  and  by  besting  the 
giants  at  feats  of  strength  and  endurance  to  which  they  are 
challenged.  One  helper  can  hear  the  grass  grow,  one  can 
drink  rivers,  and  one  can  eat  great  quantities  of  flesh. 

A  Russian  tale  from  Afanasiev  ^^  furnishes  a  striking 
example  of  the  way  in  which  the  companions,  who  are  in 

"Renel  thinks  no.  146  of  his  collection  a  "  conte  arabe."  (See 
n,  p.  291.) 

"J.  F.  Campbell,  Popular  Talcs  of  the  West  Highlands,  no.  16,  i, 
pp.  236  flf. 

"  Translated  by  Anton  Dietrich,  Russische  Yolksmarchen,  1831, 
no.  3,  Von  den  sieben  Siineonen,  den  levblichen  Brildern. 


302  WILLARD    EDWARD    FARNIIAM 

this  case  brothers,  may  rescue  a  princess  for  another,  and 
not  in  any  wav  contend  for  her.  This  tale  is  so  close  to 
Rescue  versions  of  The  Contending  Lovers  that  it  may  be 
only  a  corruption  of  the  lover  tale.  On  the  other  hand, 
it  may  represent  an  intermediate  stage  in  the  development 
of  the  skilful  companions  into  contending  lovers.  The 
tale  may  be  summarized  as  follows : 

A  man  and  his  wife  after  seven  years  of  unfulfilled  desire  for 
children  are  at  last  granted  seven  sons,  all  of  whom  are  called 
Simeon.  When  the  parents  die,  the  tsar  is  struck  with  the  promise 
shoAvn  by  the  seven  boys,  and  takes  them  into  his  palace.  "  What 
arts  would  you  like  to  learn?  "  he  asks  each,  and  each  answers  that 
he  wants  no  new  art  but  is  already  proficient  in  one.  The  first  can 
forge  a  pillar  reaching  to  the  sky.  The  second  can  climb  this  pillar 
and  see  over  all  lands.  The  third  with  an  axe  made  by  the  first 
can  construct  in  a  moment  a  ship.  The  fourth  on  necessity  can 
take  this  ship  to  the  underground  kingdom  to  avoid  an  enemy.  The 
fifth  can  hit  a  bird,  no  matter  how  far  away,  with  a  gun  forged  by 
the  first  brother.  The  sixth  can  catch  this  bird  before  it  touches 
the  ground.     The  seventh  is  a  clever  thief. 

On  the  advice  of  his  counsellors,  the  tsar  decides  to  let  the  seven 
brothers  try  to  get  for  him  the  Tsarevna  Yelena  the  Beautiful. 
The  climber  from  the  top  of  his  pillar  sees  her,  and  in  a  quickly 
constructed  ship  the  brothers  go  to  her.  The  thief  entices  her 
aboard  ship  by  a  clever  ruse,  but  when  she  finds  that  they  are  at 
sea,  she  changes  herself  into  a  swan.  The  marksman  shoots  her, 
the  catcher  catches  her,  and  she  becomes  once  more  a  woman.  The 
tsar  from  whom  she  was  taken  pursues,  but  the  ship  is  taken  to  the 
underworld,  and  escapes. 

There  is  no  strife  for  the  captured  beauty.  The  tale  concludes: 
"  Die  Simeonen  aber  fuhren  gliicklich  in  ihr  Eeich,  und  iiberlieferten 
die  schone  Zarin  Helene  dem  Zaren  Ador,  welcher  den  Simeonen 
fiir  ihren  so  grossen  Dienst  die  Freiheit  gab  imd  viel  Gold  imd 
Silber  und  Edelsteine  schenkte.  Und  er  lebte  mit  der  schonen 
Konigin  Helene  viele  Jahre  in  Gliick  und  Frieden." 

But  it  need  not  be  a  princess  whom  the  companions  help 
the  hero  to  rescue.  In  six  Celtic  stories  of  The  Hand  and 
the  Child  treated  by  Professor  Kittredge,^^  it  is  a  child. 

^*Arthm  and  Gorlagon,  1903,  pp.  223  ff. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVERS  303 

According  to  one  of  these  versions,"  which  may  be  taken  as  typ- 
ical, Finn  undertakes  to  help  A  Big  Young  Hero,  who  has  been 
losing  his  children  in  a  mysterious  manner.  He  meets  seven  skilful 
companions:  a  carpenter,  a  tracker,  a  gripper,  a  climber,  a  thief, 
a  listener,  a  marksman.  The  carpenter  makes  a  ship,  the  tracker 
guides  Finn  across  the  sea  to  the  house  of  the  Big  Young  Hero. 
At  midnight  when  a  child  is  born,  a  hand  comes  down  the  chimney, 
which  the  gripper  seizes  and  wrenches  off  at  the  shoulder.  The 
giant  outside  puts  down  his  other  hand  and  takes  the  child.  Finn, 
with  the  aid  of  his  companions,  however,  rescues  the  child  next 
morning.  The  climber  scales  the  castle  of  the  giant,  carrying  up 
the  thief,  who  takes  the  baby,  and  two  other  children  who  had  been 
stolen.  The  party  flees,  and  the  listener  hears  the  giant  awake 
after  the  band  has  put  to  sea.  The  giant  is  wading  after  them, 
when  Finn,  who  plays  the  part  of  the  man  of  knowledge,  finds  that 
there  is  one  vulnerable  spot  on  the  giant,  and  this  the  marksman 
hits.     The  adventure  is  successfully  concluded. 

This  Celtic  storj  is  an  interesting  composite  of  a  tale 
of  tlie  Beownlf  type  ^®  and  some  tale  in  whicli  the  skilful 
artisans  occur.  There  is  an  obvious  similarity  between 
the  attainments  of  the  helpers  in  this  case  and  those  of 
the  lovers  in  the  versions  of  The  Contending  Lovers  which 
contain  the  incident  of  the  ship.  Perhaps  the  Celtic  tale 
derived  its  skilful  companions  from  some  version  of  The 
Contending  Lovers  in  which  a  maiden  is  rescued,  the 
rescue  in  each  case  forming  the  common  term  which  sug- 
gested the  borrowing.  Or,  the  situation  may  have  been 
reversed  and  The  Contending  Lovers  have  obtained  skilled 
suitors  from  some  tale  of  rescue  like  The  Hand  and  the 
Child.  Matters  are  now  getting  pretty  intricate,  and  we 
must  be  careful  to  keep  relationships  clear  at  this  point. 
It  is  important  to  remember  that  both  The  Hand  and  the 
Child  and  the  Eescue  type  of  The  Contending  Lovers  are 

"MacDaugal,  Foil-  and  Hero  Tales,  no.  1,  pp.  Iff.  Summarized 
at  length  by  Professor  Kittredge. 

"  See  Kittredge,  work  cited,  p.  227,  note  2,  for  extensive  refer- 
ences to  literature  on  the  subject. 


304  WILLAED    EDWAED    FAENIIAM 

almost  certainly  composites,  and  that  no  matter  wliich  one 
may  have  borrowed  from  the  other,  the  skilful  young  men 
are  ultimately  derived  from  a  simpler  tale. 

If  the  companions  in  the  Celtic  tale  actually  do  come 
from  some  already  made  combination  in  The  Contending 
Lovers,  and  not  from  a  simple  tale  of  The  Shilful  Com- 
panions where  no  girl  figures  as  the  prize,  the  following 
Icelandic  tale  might  be  taken  as  showing  an  intermediate 
stage  in  the  combination,  since  it  is  much  closer  to  the 
true  tale  of  contending  lovers  than  The  Hand  and  the 
Child.    It  also  shows  elements  of  the  Beowulf  story.  ^''' 

A  king  and  queen  have  six  daughters.  The  king's  brother  and 
wife  have  six  sons  reared  in  seclusion.  The  sons  finally  set  out  for 
the  court,  their  mother  giving  wonderful  gifts  to  four  of  them  to 
aid  them  in  making  their  fortunes.  The  first  receives  a  "  kniiuel " 
to  show  the  way,  the  second  a  sharp  sword  which  cuts  anything, 
the  third  a  nutshell  which  can  be  set  on  water  and  quickly  con- 
verted into  a  ship,  the  fourth  a  powder  in  a  linen  sack  which  makes 
things  bright  as  day.  But  the  brothers  are  also  endowed  with 
natural  gifts  and  they  take  appropriate  names:  Guthauende,  Gut- 
wachende,  Gutsingende,  Gutkletternde,  Gutsplirende,  Gutschlafende. 
A  monster  has  carried  off  all  the  princesses  but  the  youngest.  Wlien 
he  comes  again,  the  brothers  through  their  accomplishments  watch 
for  him,  track  him  to  his  castle,  kill  him  and  his  wife,  and  rescue 
the  five  princesses  held  by  him.  Then  each  prince  marries  one  of 
the  six  daughters  of  his  uncle  the  king. 

This  tale  is  interesting  in  many  ways.  It  is  curious 
because  of  the  material  gifts  and  natural  gifts,  which  are 
not  usually  found  together.  Moreover,  the  only  changes 
necessary  to  make  it  a  perfect  combination  of  the  contend- 
ing-lover  theme  with  what  we  may  call  the  Beowulf  theme 
are  the  reduction  of  the  six  princesses  to  one  and  the 
raising  of  a  dispute  about  her  possession.  The  brothers 
perform  their  rescue  much  as  the  companions  do  in  The 

"  Adeline  Eittershaus,  Die  Neuislondischen  Volksmarchcn,  1902, 
no.  42,  pp.  177  ff.,  Die  Jctinstreichcn  Briider. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEES  305 

Hand  and  the  Child.  But  even  here  there  is  nothing  to 
prove  that  the  skilful  brothers  do  not  come  from  a  simple 
tale  of  skilful  companions  or  brothers.^^ 

The  Icelandic  composite  has  brought  us  naturally  to  a 
consideration  of  the  brotherhood  of  the  lovers  or  com- 
panions. Tales  in  which  brothers  go  out  into  the  world 
to  learn  something  useful,  and  to  make  their  fortunes,  are 
common  in  a  host  of  forms.  Very  often  a  father  or  a 
mother  sends  the  boys  out  to  shift  for  themselves  because 
of  poverty.  The  interesting  peculiarity  of  such  tales  is 
that  they  seem  to  be  simple;  the  abilities  which  the  sons 
acquire  are  merely  told  of,  or  perhaps  tested  by  the  parent. 
A  folk-tale  from  Lorraine  ^^  is  of  this  class.  Here  three 
sons  of  a  widow  set  out  to  seek  their  fortunes,  separate  at 
a  cross-roads,  and  return  in  one  year.  One  has  become  a 
clever  baker,  one  a  clever  locksmith,  and  the  third  a 
marvellously  clever  thief.  The  thief  is  called  upon  to  test 
his  ability  by  the  lord  of  the  neighborhood,  and  his  dem- 
onstration suggests  the  group  of  tales  known  as  The  Master 
Thief.  In  an  African  tale,^°  an  .old  man  who  has  six  sons 
asks  them  to  choose  professions.  They  choose  in  turn  war, 
thievery,  trading,  highway  robbery,  farming,  and  black- 
smithing.  The  ending  of  the  tale  takes  a  moral  turn,  for 
the  first  four  sons  are  killed,  and  the  last  two  prosper. 
An  Irish  tale,  Triur  mac  na  Bdrr-sgoloige,^'^  relates  more 
complicated  adventures  of  skilful  brothers  who  go  out  into 
the  world  to  obtain  fortune.  Grimm  124,  Die  drei  Brilder, 
in  which  one  son  becomes  a  clever  blacksmith,  the  second 
a  barber,  and  the  third  a  fencing-master,  and  then  demon- 

^  For  still  other  tales  of  skilful  companions  see  the  second  part 
of  Benfey's  Ausland  essay    {Kleinere  Schriften,  u,  iii,  pp.   132  ff.). 

^^  Cosquin,  Cotites  populaires  de  Lorraine,  no.  70,  ii,  pp.  271  ff., 
Le  Franc  Voleur. 

^S.  W.  Kolle,  African  Native  Literatwre,  1854,  no.  4,  pp.  145  ff, 

"  Douglas  Hyde,  An  Sgealuidlie  Gaelhealach,  no.  32. 


306  WILLARD    EDWARD    FARNIIAM 

state  their  abilities  before  their  father,  will  be  recalled  to 
mind  as  another  example.  Such  stories  appear  to  spring 
from  the  same  folk  interest  which  would  produce  any  tale 
of  skilful  companions,  namely,  the  interest  in  the  common 
professions  or  trades  of  the  world  and  the  skill  which 
might  be  attained  in  them. 

Tales  of  ingenious  brothers  are  related  to  those  of 
skilful  brothers.  A  French  tale  ^^  tells  of  three  brothers 
to  whom  their  poor  father  can  give  only  a  cat,  a  cock,  and 
a  ladder.  By  ingenuity  and  luck  each  uses  his  heritage 
to  such  good  advantage  that  he  gains  a  fortune,  a  rich 
wife,  and  a  castle.^^ 

The  Water  of  Life  is  a  tale  in  which  the  principals  are 
usually  three  brothers,  and  which  has  shown  some  tend- 
ency to  mix  with  both  The  Contending  Lovers  and  The 
Skilful  Companions.  The  simple  form  of  the  story, 
according  to  Professor  Gerould,  is  something  like  this :  ^* 
"  A  sick  king  has  three  sons,  who  go  out  to  seek  some 
magical  waters  (or  bird,  or  fruit)  for  his  healing.  The 
two  older  sons  fall  by  the  way  into  some  misfortune  due 
to  their  own  fault;  but  the  youngest,  not  without  aid 
of  one  sort  or  another  from  beings  with  supernatural 
powers,  succeeds  in  the  quest  and  at  the  same  time  wins 
a  princess  as  wife.  While  returning,  he  rescues  his 
brothers,  and  is  exposed  by  their  envy  and  ingratitude  to 
the  loss  of  all  he  has  gained  (sometimes  even  of  his  life). 
In  the  end,  however,  he  comes  to  his  own  either  because 
the  cure  cannot  be  completed  without  him  or  because  his 
wife  brings  the  older  princes  to  book." 

^^Mrs.  M.  Carey,  Fah-y  Legends  of  the  French  Provinces,  1887, 
pp.  183  ff. 

*'For  more  tales  of  the  sort  see  Kohler,  Kleinere  Bchriften,  i, 
p.  141. 

«*  The  Grateful  Dead,  p.  124. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEES  307 

Even  when  versions  of  tliis  tale  tell  of  a  princess  being 
won,  tliej  are  quite  distinct  from  tales  of  contending 
lovers.  One  of  their  essential  conditions  is  inequality  in 
worth  among  the  brothers,  for  the  youngest  proves  him- 
self the  most  deserving,  whereas  in  The  Contending 
Lovers  it  is  most  necessary  that  the  brothers  (or  lovers) 
shall  be  equally  deserving  in  order  that  the  dispute  may 
have  some  point.  The  success  of  a  youngest  brother  com- 
peting with  elder  brothers  is,  of  course,  a  favorite  folk 
theme.  A  princess  is  often  his  reward  in  many  tales 
beside  The  Wate?'  of  Life.  For  instance,  in  a  Sicilian 
tale,^^  a  king  promises  his  daughter  to  one  who  shall  make 
a  ship  that  will  travel  both  on  sea  and  on  land.  Brothers 
try  the  task,  but  only  the  youngest,  who  gains  supernatural 
aid,  succeeds.  It  is  the  same  in  a  Tuscan  tale,  Delia  figlia, 
del  re,  che  chi  huttava  qui  Valhero,  Vaveva  per  isposa.^^ 
Of  the  three  brothers  the  two  elder  lose  their  heads  through 
discourtesy  to  an  old  woman,  while  the  youngest  wins  the 
maid  for  taking  pains  to  be  civil.^'^ 

It  is  not  hard  to  see  how  the  many  tales  where  the 
youthful  heroes  are  brothers  could  have  exercised  their 
influence,  and  could  soon  have  turned  contending  lovers 
into  brothers.  Folk-tale  conceptions  of  this  sort  are  con- 
stantly flowing  from  one  tale  to  another. 

One  of  the  most  notable  men  of  skill  introduced  into 
The  Contending  Lovers  is  the  thief.  He  is  found  also  in 
many  versions  of  The  Skilful  Companions,  and  wherever 
he  appears  his  skill  is  usually  dwelt  upon  with  some  gusto. 
He  is  a  popular  member  of  the  professional  group. 
Beyond  a  doubt  this  thief  has  some  relationship  to  the 

^  Laura  Gonzenbaoh,  SiciliaiiiscJie  Mdrchen,  1870,  no.  74,  rr,  pp. 
96  ff. 

=«Pitr6,  Novclle  Popolari  Toscani,  1S85,  no.  17,  pp.  115  if. 
=^  Cf.  Kohler,  Kleinere  Schriften,  I,  pp.  192-3. 


308  WILLARD    EDWARD    FAENHAM 

thief  in  the  ancient  and  widespread  cycle  of  stories  dealing 
with  clever  thievery,  and  conveniently  called  The  Master- 
Thief.  Perhaps  the  thief  in  The  Contending  Lovers  has 
been  taken  over  bodily  from  these  tales  of  roguery,  the 
popularity  of  his  character  making  for  its  inclusion  in 
any  group  of  stories  having  to  do  with  skilled  arts.  Cer- 
tainly he  is  not  found  among  the  lovers  in  the  earliest 
versions  of  our  tale.  He  first  appears  in  the  Persian 
Book  of  Sindihdd,  where  he  is  described  as  a  daring  free- 
booter who  can  take  the  prey  from  the  lion's  mouth. 

A  most  natural  setting  for  the  thief  is  found  in  the 
Rescue  type  of  The  Contending  Lovers^  where  there  is  a 
maiden  ready  to  be  snatched  from  some  demon  or  monster 
without  his  knowledge,  a  situation  which  the  dexterous 
fellow  is  eminently  fitted  to  cope  with.  We  find  his  skill 
variously  described  in  our  versions.  He  can  steal  the 
eggs  from  under  a  bird  without  her  knowing  it,^^  or  can 
steal  a  thing  by  merely  saying,  "  Let  it  be  here !"  ^^  Some- 
times he  can  steal  a  lamb  while  it  is  at  suck  without  its 
mother  noticing  the  loss,^*^  and  it  is  often  simply  stated 
that  he  can  take  anything  from  anybody  without  his 
knowing  it.  Or,  perhaps  he  can  strip  a  man  asleep  with- 
out his  being  aware  of  it.^^ 

It  will  take  only  a  few  of  the  many  instances  which 
might  be  gathered  to  show  how  close  the  characteristics  of 
the  thief  in  The  Contending  Lovers  are  to  those  of  the 
master-thief.  In  The  Two  Thieves,  a  Roumanian-Gypsy 
tale,^^  a  town  thief  and  a  country  thief  have  a  test  of  skill. 
The  country  thief  steals  eggs  from  under  a  crow,  a  feat 
much  like  the  one  performed  in  the  contending-lover  tale 

^  Grimm  129.  ^'Wratislaw  9. 

*»  Pineau,  Rev.  dcs  Trad.  Pop.,  xii,  pp.  201  ff. 
'iPio,  tale  3  of  The  Golden  Casket. 
'» Groome,  Gypsy  Folk-Tales,  1899,  pp.  41  flf. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEES  309 

Grimm  129,  but  in  the  meanwliile  tlie  city  thief  steals  the 
breeches  from  off  his  colleague.^^  Ahnost  the  same  feats 
are  performed  under  different  circumstances  in  a  tale 
from  Kashmir.^'*  A  royal  mother  wants  her  son  educated 
in  the  profession  of  thievery  to  help  her  in  her  nefarious 
designs,  and  the  boy  proves  a  brilliant  pupil.  To  show 
his  skill,  he  steals  an  egg  from  under  a  hawk  without  her 
knowing  it,  and  a  pair  of  pajamas  from  off  the  body  of  an 
unsuspecting  laborer.  ISTo  matter  how  difficult  it  may  be, 
the  master-thief  is  always  equal  to  his  task.  Cases  will 
at  once  suggest  themselves  where  he  is  even  successful  in 
stealing  persons  without  their  knowing  that  they  are  being 
kidnapped.^^ 

Another  combination  with  The  Contending  Lovers 
which  is  easy  to  understand  is  that  of  what  we  may  call 
the  magic  things.  The  resulting  composite  is  the  Gifts 
type.  Even  in  the  earlier  Oriental  stories  of  contending 
lovers  no  distinction  is  made  between  service  for  the 
maiden  performed  by  skill  and  that  rendered  through  the 
possession  of  some  magic  thing.  Thus  in  the  Rescue  type, 
one  suitor  has  a  magic  chariot  or  conveyance  of  some  sort, 
while  others  have  exceptional  skill  in  various  arts.  It  is 
an  easy  step  to  make  all  the  suitors  possessors  of  magic 
things  efficacious  for  performing  the  service  needed.  The 
change  may  be  due  to  influence  from  tales  where  magic 

"  Without  attempting  to  go  into  the  question  I  give  an  interesting 
comment  by  Groome  on  this  tale :  "  Dr.  Barhu  Constantinescu's 
'  Two  Thieves '  is  so  curious  a  combination  of  the  '  Rhampsinitua ' 
story  in  Herodotus  and  of  Grimm's  Master  Thief,  that  I  am  more 
than  inclined  to  regard  it  as  the  lost  original  which,  according  to 
Campbell  of  Islay,  '  it  were  vain  to  look  for  in  any  modern  work  or 
in  any  modern  age.'"  (Work  cited,  p.  52.) 

^Knowles,  Folk-Tales  of  Kashmir,  1S93,  pp.  110  ff. 

^  As  in  Grimm  192,  Cosquin,  Conies  -pop.  de  Lorraine,  u,  pp. 
271  S.,  and  other  cases.    See  Kohler,  Kleinere  Schriften,  I,  pp.  255  ff. 

5 


310  WILLARD    EDWARD    FARNHAM 

gifts  play  prominent  parts  in  advancing  the  fortunes  of 
the  hero.  In  the  uses  to  which  they  are  put  the  familiar 
seven-league  boots  or  wishing  carpet  of  so  many  stories 
are  extremely  similar  to  the  magic  chariot  or  the  magic 
ship  with  which  contending  lovers  are  wont  to  reach  their 
princess.  Things  of  magic  virtue  which  bring  people  or 
animals  back  to  life  after  they  have  been  killed  are  of 
enonnous  variety  and  occur  in  numberless  tales.^® 

On  the  possible  intermixtures  with  The  Contending 
Lovers  which  would  influence  the  character  and  service  of 
the  suitors  I  have  barely  touched  in  the  preceding  few 
pages.  Many  versions  of  our  tale  show  evidences  of  con- 
tact and  fusion  with  surrounding  folk-lore  which  might 
be  profitably  studied  at  length.  But  it  has  become  clear 
that  with  all  the  minglings  and  changes  which  have  taken 
place  The  Contending  Lovers  has  not  been  altered  in  any 
of  its  essentials.  Though  the  lovers  have  often  been 
increased,  their  characters  changed,  and  incidents  juggled 
about,  the  point  of  the  story  remains  as  self-evident  as 
ever.  The  tale  still  deals  with  service  by  several  lovers  for 
the  same  maid,  and  since  all  the  lovers  still  contribute 
very  necessary  things  to  the  common  end,  the  dispute 
between  them  as  to  relative  merit  almost  always  rises. 

It  is  true  that  in  Europe,  because  of  the  emphasis  laid 
upon  the  professions  of  the  rivals  and  the  popularity  of 
the  Rescue  type,  claims  based  upon  intrinsic  worth,  such 
as  might  be  manifested  in  caste  or  nobility,  grow  infre- 
quent. ^Nevertheless,  in  the  Gifts  type,  the  lovers  have  not 
become  artisans  at  all,  and  they  perform  service  which  is 
more  fortuitous  than  skilled. 

So  far  our  examination  of  The  Contending  Lovers  has 
shown  only  a  general  resemblance  between  that  tale  and 

^  See  a  short  treatment  by  W.  R.  S.  Ralston,  Russian  Folk-Tale^ 
1873,  pp.  231  ff. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVERS  311 

Chaucer's  Paiiement  of  Foules.     The  versions  we  have 
studied,  by  multiplyiug  the  number  of  the  suitors  and 
focusing  attention  on  their  technical  skill,  have  departed 
from  the  fomi  of  the  story  which  must  have  been  known  . 
to  Chaucer.     The  features  we  have  next  to  discuss  may^^ 
well  cause  us  to  revert  to  the  Parlement.    These  features  <* 
are  the  assemblies  held  to  decide  the  dispute,  the  argu- 
ments of  the  lovers,  the  right  of  self-choice  which  is  often 
granted  to  the  maiden,  and  the  final  inability  of  judge  or 
maiden  to  reach  a  decision.    All  may  be  regarded  as  to  a 
greater  or  less  degree  characteristic  of  The  Contending 
Lovers,  and  all  throw  light  on  the  Parlement. 

The  Dispute  and  the  Couet 

The  assembly  for  the  disposition  of  the  maid  and  its 
accompanying  parliamentary  discussion  often  appear  in 
embryonic  stages,  and  the  development  of  the  idea  may 
be  easily  traced.  iSometimes  there  are  mere  statements 
that  a  dispute  is  held,  or  brief  descriptions  of  an  argument 
before  the  father  of  the  girl,  and  again  there  are  much 
more  elaborate  descriptions  of  an  actual  court  with  a 
presiding  judge. 

A  dispute  without  a  judge  occurs,  it  will  be  remem- 
bered, in  the  second  tale  of  the  Vetdlapanchavinsafi.  We 
are  told :  "  La-dessus,  voila  les  trois  brahmanes  qui, 
aveugles  par  la  colore,  se  disputent  la  jeune  fiUe."  ^"^  In 
the  fifth  of  the  same  collection,  the  father  of  the  girl  is 
called  upon  to  pass  judgment:  "  Dcr  Vater  liberlegte: 
'  Alle  haben  Hiilfe  geleistet,  wem  soil  ich  sie  nun  geben, 
und  wem  nicht  ? '  "  ^s  The  deliberative  character  of  the 
father  is  expanded  in  the  seventh  Yetdla  tale,  where  four 

^'Tr.  Henry,  Rev.  des  Trad.  Pop.,  J,  p.  371. 
»»Tr.  Benfey,  Kleinere  Schriftcn,  ii,  iii,  p.  98. 


312  WILLARD    EDWARD    FARNHAM 

suitors  present  their  claims  in  turn  with  brief  speeches 
and  in  orderly  fashion.  Then  the  father  says,  "  The  four 
are  equal  in  excellence  and  attainments — to  which  shall  I 
give  the  maiden  ?  "  ^^ 

The  suitors  in  the  story  of  the  wooden  woman  (Crea- 
tion type)  in  the  Tuti-Ndma  actually  agree  to  take  their 
case  before  a  judge,  and  this  leads  to  some  amusing  com- 
plications, and  the  final  changing  of  the  woman  back  into- 
wood.^^ 

>.  So  the  basic  idea  of  a  court  was  present  in  the  Oriental 
'versions,  and  even  received  some  development.  However, 
once  the  tale  reaches  Europe  this  same  idea  appears  in  a 
variety  of  forms.  The  extensive  elaboration  in  the 
Paradiso  has  been  already  discussed.  Another  early 
Italian  handling  of  the  court  conception  from  the  Rescue 
tale  told  by  Morlinus  and  Straparola  is  interesting. 
Straparola  says:  *^  "  But  with  regard  to  the  lady,  seeing 
it  was  not  possible  to  divide  her  into  three  parts,  there 
arose  a  sharp  dispute  between  the  brothers  as  to  which  one 
of  them  should  retain  her,  and  the  wrangling  over  this 
point  to  decide  who  had  the  greatest  claim  to  her  was  very 
long.  Indeed,  up  to  this  present  day  it  is  still  before  the 
court :  wherefore  we  shall  each  settle  the  cause  as  we  think 
right,  while  the  judge  keeps  us  waiting  for  his  decision." 
Straparola's  ending  is  a  free  translation  of  that  in  Mor- 
linus :  *^  "  Post  longas  disceptationes,  adhuc  sub  Palae- 
mone  jacet  quaestio ;  Quis  eorum  in  pari  causa  aglaeam 
indivisibilem  meretur.  Ipse  vero  tibi  lectori  argumentis 
judicandum  relinquo." 

The  fact  that  a  court  was  held  is  taken  for  granted 

^  Tr.  Barker,  Baital  Pachlst,  p.  162. 

«  Tr.  for  J.  Debrett,  pp.  51  ff.    See  p.  268  above. 

"■  Tr.  Waters,  p.  73. 

*^  Hieronymi  Morlini,  Parthenopei,  Novellae,  etc.,  1855,  p.  155. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEES  313 

•here.  Incidentally,  it  is  doubtful  if  any  one  instance 
could  make  plainer  the  fact  that  The  Contending  Lovers 
was  still  regarded  as  a  hoax  story,  lacking  a  definite 
decision. 

An  extensive  elaboration  of  the  court  scene  is  probably 
a  sign  of  sophistication,  but  other  simple  versions  besides 
the  one  told  by  Morlinus  and  Straparola  have  short  refer-  p 
ences  to  an  actual  court  or  a  parliament.  The  lovers  ■ga  ^^ 
-io~st  "  courte-paille  "  in  a  Breton  Rescue  tale,  for  we  are 
told :  ^^  "  Les  quatre  freres  ramenerent  la  princesse  au 
palais  du  roi;  comme  elle  devait  epouser  son  liberateur, 
et  que  tons  les  quatre  avaient  contribue  a  sa  delivrance, 
ils  tirerent  a  la  courte-paille  pour  savoir  celui  qui  devien- 
drait  le  gendre  du  roi."  In  this  case  the  deadlock  is 
broken,  and  the  decision  falls  to  the  tailor. 

Sometimes  it  is  expressly  stated  that  people  come  to  the 
judgTnent  from  all  sides  and  that  the  hearing  is  held 
before  a  great  assemblage.^'*  In  other  versions  the  lovers 
may  find  difiiculty  in  obtaining  a  judge.  In  a  Serbian 
Rescue  tale,"*^  the  brothers  first  go  to  the  Mother  of  the 
Wind,  who  directs  them  to  the  Mother  of  the  Moon,  who 
directs  them  to  the  Mother  of  the  Sun,  who  finally  directs 
them  to  their  ovsti  mother;  and  in  a  Bohemian  Gifts  tale,^^ 
the  question  is  thrown  open  to  anyone  who  thinks  himself 
wise  enough  to  settle  it.  "  ---^ 

There  is  one  Breton  tale  in  which  the  court  scene  is  so     > 
much  expanded,  and  which  is  so  startlingly  close  in  essen- 
tial character  to  the  judgment  in  the  Parlement  of  Foules,  ] 

«  S6billot,  p.  59. 

**As  in  IMeyer,  p.  121,  an  Albanian  Rescue  story,  and  Jones-Kropf, 
p.  156,  a  Magyar  Gifts  story.  In  the  latter  "all  the  learned  and  old 
people  of  the  realm  "  are  called  together. 

«Jagi(5,  Arch.  f.  Slav.  Phil,  y,  p.  37. 

*•  Naake,  p.  206. 


314  WILLAED    EDWAKD    FARNHAM 

that  I  quote  part  of  it  in  full.  The  version  is  of  the 
Eescue  type  with  the  incident  of  the  ship.  The  court  is 
described  as  follows :  ^"^ 

Les  six  fr^res  gtaient  amoureux  de  la  Princesse,  et  chacun  d'eux 
pr6tendait  avoir  le  plus  de  droits  a  obtenir  sa  main.  Comme  ils  ne 
pouvaient  s'entendre  a  ce  sujet,  ils  convinrent  de  s'en  rapporter  au 
jugement  de  leur  p&re.  Chacun  d'eux  exposa  done  ses  raisons  et 
ses  pr^tendus  droits  aux  vieux  seigneur,  assis  sur  un  fauteuil,  conime 
un  juge  sur  son  tribunal,  et  ayant  a  cot4  de  lui  la  Princesse. 

L'aine,  le  grimpeur,  parla  d'abord  et  dit: 

iC'est  moi,  qui,  au  p6ril  de  ma  vie,  >ai  enlev6  la  Princesse  du 
chateau  oH  le  monstre  la  retenait  captive. 

Et  c'est  moi,  dit  le  constructeur  de  batiments,  qui  ai  construit  le 
batiment  qui  vous  a  conduits  a  I'ile  et  vous  en  a  ensuite  ramen^s. 

(The  pleading  continues  in  this  fashion  until  each  of  the  six 
suitors  has  placed  his  claims  before  the  judge.) 

Le  vieux  seigneur  etait  fort  embarrass^  et  ne  savait  en  faveur 
duquel  de  ses  fils  se  prononcer,  leur  trouvant  a  tons  des  droits  incon- 
testables,  si  bien  que  Ton  finit  par  decider,  et  c'etait  bien  le  plus 
sage,  que  ce  serait  la  Princesse  elle-menie  qui  ferait  son  choix. 

L'histoire  ne  dit  pas  duquel  des  six  frferes  elle  donna  le  prefe- 
rence; mais,  moi,  je  croirais  volontiers  que  ce  fut  au  devineur,  parce 
qu'il  etait  le  plus  instruit,  le  plus  jeune,  et  surtout  le  plus  joli 
gargon. 

In  this  remarkable  modern  folk-tale  we  find  most  of 
the  essential  similarities  to  the  Parlement  that  occur  in 
^       \        the  Paradiso,  and  one  which  is  not  there.     The  sitting  of 
.■^J^^         .^    the  judge  on  the  "  fauteuil "  with  the  girl  beside  him 
'         while  the  suitors  plead  for  themselves  instead  of  having 
advocates  to  plead  for  them  reminds  us  somewhat  more 
strongly  of  the  scene  in  the  Parlement  with  I^ature  hold- 
ing the  formel  eagle  in  her  hand.    Like  both  Pamdiso  and 
(^'  Parlement,  the  folk-tale  has  the  judge  put  the  decision 
-^;"up  to  the  maiden  herself.     Exceedingly  significant  is  the 
statement  of  the  teller  that  there  is  nothing  in  the  real 
story  to  indicate  what  decision  she  really  made.     With  a 

«  Luzel,  pp.  324  S. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEES  315 

show  of  honesty  that  is  at  once  an  invitation  to  discussion, 
the  teller  separates  his  own  opinions  from  the  actual  tradi- 
tional facts. 

The  evidence  shows  conclusively,  then,  that  the  court 
scene,  embryonic  or  developed,  is  a  native  feature  of  The 
Contending  Lovers.  Even  when  the  suitors  wrangle 
among  themselves  with  no  other  persons  present,  they  may 
be  regarded  as  holding  a  court  without  the  judge. 

The  development  of  the  court  may  be  partly  due  to  an 
intermixture  from  other  tales.  The  idea  of  a  court  or 
parliament  held  to  decide  some  question  is  by  no  means 
uncommon  in  folk-tales.  E'evertheless,  there  is  no  great 
need  to  go  far  outside  The  Contending  Lovers  itself  for 
the  material  found  in  its  descriptions  of  the  lovers'  court. 
Some  of  the  elaboration  here  could  be  explained  by  an 
every-day  interest  of  the  tellers  in  actual  court  trials  with 
which  they  were  familiar. 

The  Svayamvara, 

A  notable  feature  of  the  Parlement  of  Foules  which  has 
rarely  failed   to   attract  attention,   no  matter  what   the  ,i    Jc. 

interpretation  put  upon  the  poem,  is  the  permission  given  y^  ' 
to  the  formel  by  Dame  Nature  to  choose  her  own  mate. 
In  Giovanni  da  Prato's  Paradiso,  substantially  the  same 
grant  is  made  by  Jove  to  Melissa,^^  and  so  is  it  given  to 
the  maiden  in  several  other  versions  of  The  Contending 
Lovers.  In  spite  of  the  usual  belief  that  woman  in  the 
East  plays  but  a  small  part  in  the  making  of  her  own 
marriage,  the  convention  of  self-choice  as  found  in  our 
tales  probably  is  of  Oriental  origin.  The  public  choice  of 
a  husband  by  a  princess  from  among  a  number  of  noble 
suitors  assembled  for  the  purpose  was  a  well-recognized 

«See  P«&.  Mod.  Lang.  Assoc,  xxxn,  p.  499. 


-^< 


316  WILLARD    EDWARD    FARNHAM 

proceeding  in  ancient  India,  and  the  custom  was  called  tlie 
svayamvara,  literally  self-choice. 

Among  the  Oriental  versions  of  our  talc,  the  maiden  is 
granted  the  self-choice  in  the  Caste  story  which  is  the 
seventh  of  the  Vetdlapanchavinsati.  It  will  be  remem- 
bered that  when  the  princess  cannot  choose  between  certain 
youths  whom  her  father  proposes  as  likely  husbands,  he 
tells  her  to  make  choice  of  a  husband  herself,  and  she  then 
says  she  must  have  a  mate  who  is  at  once  the  happy 
possessor  of  good  looks,  good  qualities,  and  good  sense. 
After  the  four  qualifying  suitors  present  themselves  and 
argue,  the  perplexed  father  goes  to  the  daughter,  explains 
the  claims,  and  asks  her  to  make  final  decision  among  the 
four.  "  On  hearing  this  statement,  she  was  abashed,  and 
hanging  down  her  head,  knew  not  what  to  reply."  ^^ 

By  way  of  reviewing  the  evidence,  it  may  be  well  to 
point  out  that  the  self-choice  is  also  definitely  given  to 
the  maiden  in  the  following  versions  which  have  been 
already  incliTded  in  the  summary: 

Resuscitation. — Ceylonese,  Parker  74. 

Rescue. — Breton,  Luzel  9 ;  Albanian,  Dozon,  p.  27 ; 
Albanian,  Meyer  8 ;  Danish,  Grundtvig  17 ;  Slavic,  Wen- 
zig,  p.  140. 

Gifts. — Slavic,  Krauss  63 ;  Roumanian-Gypsy,  Groome 
13 ;  Spanish,  Caballero-Ingram,  p.  22 ;  Portugmese,  Pe- 
droso-Monteiro  23 ;  African,  Yelten,  p.  71. 

These  versions  are  by  no  means  a  majority,  but  the 
incident  of  self-choice  crops  up  too  frequently  not  to  be 
tradition  rightfully  belonging  to  The  Contending  Lovers 
under  certain  conditions.  We  have  found  it  in  Vetdla  7, 
one  of  the  oldest  versions,  in  the  medieval  version  from 
the  Paradiso,  and  in  the  modern  versions  of  varying  types 
collected  above. 

*»  Barker,  Baital  PacMsl,  p.  162. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVERS  317 

The  ancient  Indian  epics  give  plentiful  information  as 
to  how  the  svaymivara  is  usually  held.  Great  pomp  and 
ceremony  attend  the  event.  After  the  father  has  notified 
"  the  princes  of  the  earth  "  that  his  daughter  is  to  choose 
a  husband  at  the  svayamvara,  an  amphitheatre  is  often 
made  ready,  and  costly  decorations  are  strewn  about.  On 
the  day  of  the  choice  the  princes  stand  in  array  in  the 
amphitheatre.  How  the  maid  signifies  her  will  is  told 
in  a  description  of  Kunti's  svayamvara  from  the  MaJid- 
hharata:  ^^ 

The  large-eyed  daughter  of  Kunti-bhoja,  Pritha  by  name,  was 
endued  with  beauty  and  every  accomplishment.  Of  rigid  vows,  she 
was  devoted  to  virtue,  and  possessed  every  good  quality.  But  though 
endued  with  beauty  and  youth  and  every  womanly  attribute,  yet  it 
so  happened  that  no  king  asked  for  her  hand.  Her  father  Kunti- 
bhoja,  seeing  this,  invited,  O  best  of  monarchs,  the  princes  and 
kings  of  other  countries  and  desired  his  daughter  to  elect  her  hus- 
band from  among  his  guests.  The  intelligent  Kunti,  entering  the 
amphitheatre,  beheld  Pandu — the  foremost  of  the  Bharatas — that 
tiger  among  kings — in  that  concourse  of  crowned  heads.  Proud  as 
the  lion,  broad-chested,  bull-eyed,  endued  with  great  strength,  and 
out-shining  in  splendour  all  other  monarchs,  he  looked  like  another 
Indra  in  that  royal  assemblage.  The  amiable  daughter  of  Kunti- 
bhoja,  of  faultless  features,  beholding  Pandu,  that  best  of  men  in 
that  assembly,  became  very  much  agitated.  And  advancing  with 
modesty,  all  the  while  quivering  with  emotion,  she  placed  the  nuptial 
garland  round  Pandu's  neck.  The  other  monarchs,  seeing  Kunti 
choose  Pandu  for  her  lord,  returned  to  their  respective  kingdoms, 
on  elephants,  horses,  and  cars,  as  they  came. 

The  svayamvara  and  the  mediaeval  tournament  for  a 
lady's  hand  seem  to  be  two  institutions  with  similarities, 
but  not  necessarily  related, ^^     ISTor  does  the  tournament 

*The  Mahahharata  in  English,  translated  by  Pratapa  Chandra 
Riiy,  Calcutta,  1889 — .  Adi  Parva,  Section  cxn,  pp.  332  ff.  In  spite 
of  the  obvious  shortcomings  of  this  translation  due  to  somewhat 
infelicitous  use  of  English  idiom  I  must  use  it  for  lack  of  a  better. 

^  The  resemblance  is  especially  striking  when  feats  of  strength  or 
skill  are  performed  at  the  svayamvara,  as  sometimes  happens.     (See 


318  WILLAED    EDWAED    FAENHAM 

seem  to  have  influenced  perceptibly  the  self-choice  as  it 
is  found  in  the  usual  story  of  The  Conteiiding  Lovers. 
That  feature  of  the  tale  bears  the  stamp  of  its  Oriental 
origin. 

The  right  of  self-choice,  then,  may  be  regarded  as  a  bit 
of  elaboration  which  has  attached  itself  to  our  tale.  The 
conditions  do  not  require  that  such  a  privilege  should  be 
conferred  upon  the  maid  in  order  that  the  desired  denou- 
ment  may  be  reached,  but  they  are  unquestionably  favor- 
able to  the  introduction  of  the  incident.  Suspense  is 
heightened  when  the  problem  is  laid  before  the  maid,  and 
the  resulting  situation  is  one  that  naturally  makes  its  own 
appeal  to  the  interest  of  an  audience.  When,  after  con- 
sideration, the  maid  finds  that  even  she,  who  is  most  con- 
cerned in  the  outcome  of  the  controversy,  cannot  arrive 
at  a  decision,  greater  emphasis  is  laid  on  the  fact  that 
the  solution  of  the  problem  is  actually  impossible. 

The  self-choice  is  capable  of  being  attached  to  stories 
which  show  no  good  indication  of  ever  having  belonged  to 
The  Contending  Lovers.  Such  is  the  case  in  a  modern 
peasant  tale  from  Ukraine.^^  Three  brothers  come  to  woo 
a  girl,  and  the  father  thinks  them  all  worthy  of  her.     He 

account  of  Draupadi's  Svayamvara,  Mahahharata,  tr.  Ray,  Adi  Parva, 
section  CLXXXvii,  pp.  524  ff . )  There  are  stories  of  mediaeval  tourna- 
ments which  have  almost  all  the  features  of  the  Oriental  svayam- 
vara. In  Ipomedon,  for  example,  the  daughter  of  the  Duke  of 
Calabria,  when  she  is  besought  by  her  barons  to  take  a  husband, 
requests  that  a  three  days'  tournament  be  announced  for  her  hand, 
expecting  Ipomedon  to  win  her.  (Ed.  Kolbing  and  Koschwitz,  1889, 
11.  2515-52,  p.  43.)  Instances  from  romances  might  be  multiplied 
beyond  necessity.  Sir  Triamour,  Sir  Gowther,  Le  Bone  Florence  de 
Rome,  Parthenope  of  Blois,  and  Sir  Degravant  all  furnish  instances 
of  jousts  where  the  fair  lady  is  the  prize. 

"Friedrich  S.  Krauss,  Das  Gesclilechtleben  des  Ukrainischen 
Bauernvolkes,  1909,  Teil  i,  pp.  248  ff.,  Das  hoffnimgsvolle,  siindige 
Fleisch. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVERS  319 

decides  to  let  the  girl  herself  choose,  and  upon  being  called 
and  viewing  the  young  men,  she  does  so.  The  details 
connected  with  her  choice  are  generally  obscene. 

But  it  is  evident  that  the  svdyarmara  does  not  of  itself 
produce  an  insoluble  love  problem,  for  in  the  Indian  epics 
the  maiden  usually  finds  no  difficulty  in  discovering  a 
preference  for  some  one  of  the  suitors  arrayed  before  her._ 
Yet  when  combined  with  The  Contending  Lovers,  the«c^ 
svayanivara  may  be  made  to  complicate  the  problem  by 
heightening  the  suspense.  Our  tale  is  par  excellence  the 
story  of  a  love  problem.  In  the  Oriental  versions  this  is 
usually  made  clear  beyond  peradventure  of  doubt  by  the 
settings  in  which  it  is  placed.  In  Europe  the  story  has 
at  times  been  corrupted  so  that  one  suitor  or  another  is 
raade  to  gain  a  favorable  decision,  but  in  such  cases  the 
narrator's  preference  has  been  allowed  to  color  the  story. 
Thus  The  Contending  Lovers  presents  a  true  questione 
d'amore  formulated  by  the  Orientals  before  the  principles 
of  courtly  love  were  established  in  European  society. 

The  Ending  of  the  Tale 

Although  uncorrupted  versions  of  our  tale  have  in  com- 
mon a  lack  of  definite  decision,  the  means  adopted  to  set 
the  problem  and  yet  wind  up  the  story  in  some  satisfactory 
fashion  are  many  and  ingenious.  We  have  seen  that  a 
narrator  niay  say  flat-footedly,  as  did  Morlinus  and  Stra- 
parola,^^  that  the  case  is  still  under  discussion.  But  some 
tellers  are  loath  to  leave  matters  thus  wholly  in  the  air. 
In  the  Pentamerone,^'^  the  girl  is,  not  without  comic  in- 
tent, adjudged  to  the  father  of  the  skilful  suitors,  since  no 
ground  of  preference  can  be  discovered  among  the  con- 
testants themselves.    The  reason  given  is  that  he  is  respon- 

"  See  p.  312  above.  ^  See  p.  285  above. 


320  WILLAED    EDWAED    FAENHAM 

sible  for  having  the  sons  instructed  in  their  arts.  The 
father  is  simih^rlj  rewarded  in  Velten,  p.  71.  A  fanciful 
and  poetic  conclusion  occurs  in  four  European  Rescue 
versions.^^  The  suitors  and  the  girl,  when  it  is  realized 
that  no  decision  can  be  reached,  are  taken  up  to  Heaven 
miraculously,  w^here  they  become  stars.  Grundtvig  17 
adds  that  the  princess  twinkles  most  brightly,  and  that  the 
feeblest  star  of  the  galaxy  is  the  master-thief.  In  a  Serbian 
Gifts  version,^^  the  despairing  suitors  retreat  to  a  desert 
and  become  hermits,  while  the  princess  marries  another. 
The  maid  in  a  (Spanish  Gifts  version  ^"^  rises  smiling  from 
her  coffin  and  says,  "  You  see,  father,  that  I  must  marry 
all  three  of  them," — a  comic  touch  which  recalls  a  story 
of  a  svayamvara  in  the  ancient  Jdtaka.^^  Here  the 
maiden  cannot  decide  which  of  five  princes  to  elect  and 
consequently  takes  them  all. 

Often  the  suitors  are  not  given  the  desired  maiden,  but 
are  mollified  with  gifts  of  great  wealth,  or  of  kingdoms 
to  rule,  or  of  other  maidens  to  wife,  and  with  these  rewards 
they  declare  themselves  perfectly  satisfied.  Such  conclu- 
sions as  these  would  seem  to  arise  from  a  repugnance  on 
the  part  of  the  narrators  and  the  folk  in  general  at  leaving 
the  threads  of  a  story  untied.  It  is  felt  that  the  suitors 
deserve  happiness,  even  though  Fate  has  been  so  unkind 
as  to  make  them  principals  in  a  hopeless  love  tangle. 
Consequently  the  "  happy  ending "  is  added  as  best 
may  be. 

In  conclusion  it  may  be  reiterated  that  The  Contending 
Lovers  belongs  to  a  broad  class  of  literature  which  has 
always  had  vogue,  and  which  will  probably  never  lose  its 

^Grundtvig  17;  Krausa  32  and  33;  Jagid  46. 

"  Mijatovies-Denton,  p.  230. 

■"  Caballero-Ingram,  p.  22. 

**  See  The  Jataka,  tr.  H.  T.  Francis,  1905,  no.  536,  v,  pp.  226  S. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVEES  321 

infinite  variety.  For  centuries  people  have  been  interested 
in  discussing  problems  raised  by  the  literature  they  read 
or  hear.  Riddles  have  long  been  popular  for  themselves, 
and  have  also  been  introduced  into  the  plots  of  folk-tale 
or  ballad.  The  medieval  questioni  d'amore  appealed  to 
the  same  natural  desire  for  interesting  and  discussable 
problems  that  gave  popularity  to  The  Contending  Lovers;  ' 
the  questionij  however,  were  sophisticated  manifestations 
of  the  general  tendency  to  create  love  problems.  To-day 
we  discuss  the  problem  novel  and  the  problem  play. 

IV 

THE  PABLEMENT  OF  FOULES 

As  was  said  at  the  beginning,  an  attempt  to  classify 
Chaucer's  Parlement  of  Foules  arbitrarily  among  folk 
versions  of  The  Contending  Lovers  is  unnecessary.  But 
a  very  brief  statement  of  possibilities,  now  that  the  mate- 
rial is  before  us,  may  be  pardoned. 

The  Pwrlement  beyond  question  holds  a  love  problem, 
whether  it  has  allegorical  reference  to  a  marriage  in  the 
royal  house  or  not.  The  story  presenting  this  love  problem 
has  certain  features  distinctive  of  The  Contending 
Lovers: — arguments  of  the  lovers  based  on  love  service 
and  nobility,  a  court  scene,  a  judge,  general  discussion, 
granting  of  choice  to  the  maiden,  an  indefinite  conclusion. 
These  features  are  so  unusual  in  combination  that  they 
settle  the  matter  of  a  general  relationship.  The  Parle- 
ment is  a  tale  of  contending  lovers. 

But  the  Parlement  has  gone  far  from  any  simple  folk 
version  which  we  have  been  able  to  find.  It  is  nearest  to 
the  sophisticated  tale  of  the  founding  of  Prato  in  Gio- 
vanni da  Prato's  II  Paradiso  degli  Alberti,  but  even  this 
tale  has  characteristics  which  make  us  certain  that  in 


c. 


322  WILLARD    EDWARD    FAEIfllAM 

itself  it  does  not  explain  the  Parlement.  In  place  of 
human  lovers  Chaucer  gives  us  birds,  a  fanciful  departure 
from  the  usual  which  can  be  explained  naturally  enough 
as  I  have  tried  to  show  in  another  paper/  but  which  is 
none  the  less  a  large  departure.  Chaucer,  with  an  appre- 
ciative eye  to  dramatic  worth,  dwells  almost  exclusively 
<f"'^  on  the  court  scene,  and  what  the  lovers  have  done  to 
deserve  the  formel  we  can  only  guess  from  their  impas- 
sioned but  none  too  specific  speeches.  Chaucer  thus  gives 
us  only  part  of  the  story,  though  it  is  the  most  interesting 
and  picturesque  part.  Obviously  the  tale  has  been  much 
changed  by  Chaucer  himself  or  by  a  predecessor,  and 
changed  according  to  cultivated  notions  of  what  love 
rivalry  ought  to  be,  most  especially  notions  found  in  the 
tenets  of  courtly  love. 

This  means  that  we  cannot  clearly  discern  to  which  type 
of  The  C ontending  Lovers  the  version  behind  the  Parle- 
ment belonged,  since  the  logical  classification  of  types 
rests  largely  on  the  character  of  service  performed  by  the 
lovers.  But  venturesomely  we  may  say  that  the  Parlement 
shows  more  family  resemblance  to  the  Resuscitation  type 
and  the  Caste  type  than  the  others.    The  reasons  are  these : 

I.  The  earliest  and  most  normal  Resuscitation  ver- 
sions have  no  professions  fastened  upon  the  lovers.  This 
is  also  true  of  the  very  popular  Gifts  type,  which  is  related 
to  the  Resuscitation  group,  and  in  which  the  youths  buy 
magic  gifts  instead  of  learning  wonderful  accomplish- 
ments. Consequently  the  services  performed  ate  less 
materialistic  and  approach  more  nearly  to  courtly  love 
service.  Acts  of  love  such  as  the  moiinting  of  the  funeral 
pyre  to  be  consumed  by  the  same  fire  which  burns  the 

^  The   Foiols   in   Chaucer's   Parlement,    University   of   Wisconsin 
Studies  in  Language  and  Literature,  no.  2  (1918),  pp.  341  flf. 


THE    CONTENDING    LOVERS  323 

loved  one's  body,  or  the  building  of  a  but  in  the  cemetery 
to  guard  the  tomb  of  tbe  maid,  wliicb  occur  in  VctdJapan- 
chavhisati  2,  could  be  understood  by  a  disciple  of  courtly 
love.  So  could  tbe  act  of  tbe  first  suitor  in  tbe  Persian 
Sengueliassen-Baitissi,  tale  10,  part  3,  wbo  asks  for  tbe 
boon  of  lifting  tbe  covering  on  tbe  bier  to  take  one  last 
look  at  tbe  maiden,  and  tbus  discovers  signs  of  life. 

II.  Tbe  Caste  version  Vetdlapanchavinsati  7,  wbich 
sbows  some  bints  of  an  affinity  for  tbe  Resuscitation  type, 
since  one  suitor  bas  tbe  power  of  bringing  tbe  dead  to  life, 
lays  most  empbasis  on  difference  in  class  among  tbe 
suitors.  Wbile  in  many  otber  versions  tbe  lovers  are  all 
equally  noble,  bere  tbe  difference  belps  to  make  the  love 
problem,  much  as  in  tbe  Parlement.^ 

III.  Tbe  self-cboice  first  appears  in  a  Caste  version, 
Vetalapanchavinsati  7,  and  is  afterward  especially  popu- 
lar in  tbat  split  from  tbe  Resuscitation  type,  tbe  Gifts 
type.  Tbis  argument  is  at  best  doubtful,  for  tbe  self- 
cboice  also  appears  in  a  few  European  Rescue  versions. 

IV.  The  Paradiso  version,  wbich  is  closest  to  Chaucer, 
is  of  tbe  Resuscitation  type. 

As  for  Chaucer's  getting  bold  of  The  Contending 
Lovers,  we  know  that  this  was  in  every  way  possible,  and 
we  need  not  worry  overmuch  about  lost  steps  in  the  trans- 
mission. The  tale  was  popular  in  Italy  both  before  and 
during  Chaucer's  lifetime,  as  recorded  versions  testify. 
Chaucer  may  have  beard  the  story  told,  but  from  the 
elegantly  dressed  and  generally  gallant  character  of  the 
Parlement  love  story  and  from  what  we  know  of  Chaucer's 
own  character  we  should  judge  that  more  likely  he  read  it. 

WiLLARD  Edward  Farnham. 

'  This  is  also  true  of  the  redaction  of  the  Vetdla  story  in  the 
Kathd-Sarit-Sagara. 


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